Caiman Poems

You Think I’m Dreaming

I felt the sea on my pulse,
the salt in my brunette,
pebbles underfoot,
the net dragging me.

I felt the familiar ebb and flow,
close to shore,
tippy-toes.

The coconut permeates the dawn,
its scent infiltrating,
its oils reverberating.

I feel the palms bending low,
so low I can touch
their feather fronds;
and fronts clashing.

First drops of the storm,
so tender-pitter-patter,
light thunder,
soft lightning.

Nearby volcano erupting,
you think I’m dreaming
about your lava eyes.

Beach blanket soaked,
settling into muddy sand,
its tartan, tanned
and connecting
with the waves,
overlapping.

The island’s going under -
the  thunder, ecstatic;
its lightning erratic.

Surrounded by water,
a dugout
with flapping wings -
the canoe is land.

Lily pads on steroids
float upon deceptive waters -
so pretty I can touch them;
and caiman too.

All that’s ever been
resides in sandy eyes;
I’ve collected seashells
in my mind.

I Have the Best Snout In the Sea

I can grow thirteen feet long if I want
I stay in the Amazon where I love to hunt
I am the biggest crocodilian in the present day
Yes, I am a black caiman, slithering in the fray
One woman guessed I was a blue whale, a silly guess.
The only blue whale I know is ninety-eight feet long; I call her Tess.

Encounter With Murder of Crows

I can grow thirteen feet long if I want
I stay in the Amazon where I love to hunt
I am the biggest crocodilian in the present day
Yes, I am a black caiman, slithering in the fray
One woman guessed I was a blue whale, a silly guess.
The only blue whale I know is ninety-eight feet long; I call her Tess.

Guess Who I Am

I can grow thirteen feet long if I want
I stay in the Amazon where I love to hunt
I am the biggest crocodilian in the present day
Yes, I am a black caiman, slithering in the fray
One woman guessed I was a blue whale, a silly guess.
The only blue whale I know is ninety-eight feet long; I call her Tess.

Rainforest Anthology

from three miles away
the unmistakable sounds~
of howlers chorus  

a slithering snake. 
crushing prey without mercy~
green anaconda  

small eyed black caiman
twenty foot alligator  ~
watching and waiting 

waiting in the trees  
unsuspecting deer walks by~
a jaguar strikes  

through overlapping branches
laser beams of sunlight pierce ~
the dense canopy   

worlds largest rodent
like a giant guinea pig~
capybara dives  

painful insect sting
as painful as a gunshot~
the bullet ants bite  

rainforest rivers  
home to pods of pink mammals~
fresh water dolphins  

jesus christ lizards 
walking across the water~
miracles happen  

hanging upside down 
eating green vegetation~
slow moving sloths  

native indians  
rub poison on arrow tips~
from the green dart frog

a very short tail  
long shaggy coat and red face~
bald vakari swings 

face of a lion 
now an endangered species~
lion tamarin 

pygmy tribes food source
monkeys, pigs and antelope~
hunting to survive



Written 6th October 2018

Animal Assault

R-oaring big wild cat, 
J-aguar attacks the caiman, 
C-rocodile is dead.





Form: Acrostic Haiku

River of Doubt

twists and turns of serpentine.
perfumes that emanate from time to time,
through a wall of quietus-trees.
perils in the doubting waters,
amidst the anaconda, caiman, and piranha.

perhaps, after all, man is the more sinister
as his stomach growls
and his face’s beaten bittersweet
by the zenith of the Amazon.

his legs carry portage and dugout canoes.
sinkholes churn whirlpools.
vines hang down and choke.
~ most hope from within ~
for despairing we learn to be thiefs,
murderers hewn out of fear.

insects further trouble and attack,
and tribal eyes spy, and agitate
in perpetuities’ suspicious waters.
Rio Roosevelt thrives cantankerously
as Theodore’s enemies attack,
with deadly scratches and malaria.

but Rondon never forgets
to map and be respectful
of the tribes, even if
it’s to his own demise.

1/22/2018

Jaguar

Jet black is the night as
 Jungle feline of stealth
 Jumps on its hapless prey
 Jaws able to crush bones
 Juicy reptile swimming
 Jaguar jumps in water
 Jostling with a caiman
             -
 3/4/17

River Line Tourist

RIVER LINE TOURIST

National Geographic frame:
pleasure of plum water lilies,
under potent panama sky.
A dugout canoe rows us through.

Embera with beaded skirt, our rudder.
Caiman perched on edge of Chagris River.

2/25/2017
River Line 8/8/8/8   10/10 Unrhymed

Imbibing the Chagris River

IMBIBING THE CHAGRIS RIVER

We descend into a dugout canoe, reflective eyes
smile, assimilating each green leaf, each push of the oar.
Fertile lily pads, whisper welcome, and fervent goodbyes.
Imbibing the Chagris River, we glide. Feet walk us o’er
sand bars.  Curious caiman gather at the river’s edge.

Kim Rodrigues ©2016

NOT FOR CONTEST
Inspired by Rick Parise “River Line Form”
5 lines/14 syllables each line

The Amazon River

The Amazon River

The Capybara wades the shore
A Wooly monkey climbs a vine
To search for food up on the trees 
The Amazon that I adore
Its total nature I will bind
Bromeliads have blushed with love
Blending in the waters shore

The Jaguar stalks to hunt his food
The Anaconda will digest
His conquest on the night before
Humans carefully sense the mood
The Fuana find their time to rest
Anteaters sniff upon the floor
for ants and bugs to sense for food

The Dolphins rise up then they fly
Agressively create a scene
Boats pass on by and view the sight
As a silent Caiman wades on by
The quiet of the night serene
Stars surround the forest night
The Dragonflies decide to fly

Stillness in the eerie night
Nature's forces will blend in
Insects sit on exquisite leaves
A struggle of each species plight
Resplendent as they'll all akin
Coalescing as they interweave
The Amazon and all its might 

Human Nature Contest
sponsored by Marugu Mu
Ralph Sergi January 28, 2016

A Visit To a Zoo

Zebras are stripy I’m sure you can see,
Yaks chewing cud as slow as can be, 
X-ray tetra in the aquarium are seen,
Warthogs with curly, white tusks that gleam,
Vertebrates aplenty, some invertebrates too,
Usually are seen at a visit to a zoo.
Tapirs with their long funny noses,
Slithering snakes in glass fronted enclosures,
Roaring tigers with camouflage stripe,
Quizzical otters eat eggs that they like,
Puma black prowls through the bush,
Orange orangutans needing a brush.
Never one to refuse a tasty dish
Macaroni penguins smell of fish,
Lions in the sunlight all day sleeping,
Komodo dragons quietly creeping,
Javan Rhinoceros with skin like armour,
Indian elephants size makes such drama,
Hippos with their mouths open wide,
Galapagos tortoise, oh what a prize!
Fennec fox with really long ears,
Endangered animals that people fear,
Dangerous animals taking a nap,
Caiman and crocodile waiting to snap,
Bold zoo keepers picking up poo,
All able to be seen at a trip to the zoo.

Croc

a skeleton in disguise they call me crocodile
but truly I am an alligator swimming with the sharks
the caiman I left in Barranquilla and wearing my croc
I walk the streets of Brooklyn looking for a tree

The Pond In Its Glory

Gentle ripples on the water
Set in motion by a slight breeze
Move quietly on the pond's surface
With gracefulness and effortless ease

A fishing bird flies in suddenly
Skimming the pond's surface with its feet
Then dives headfirst into the water
In its search of a meal to eat

Something just broke the water's surface
Forcing me to full attention
I can see now an eye and the nose 
Of a fledgling baby caiman

A bird's neck appears from the water
In its beak, there's a struggling fish
One gulp and the fish disappears
That was indeed a tasty dish

Water lily pads bob up and down
In harmony with the rippling water
Their crimson blooms standing upright
Sprinkled among the lilies cluster

Feeding close to the water's edge
There's a roving group of small fishes
They nibble on the morsels they find
Among roots of water grasses

I treasure sitting here in silence
Observing the pond in its glory
It fills me with such peacefulness
And deep feelings of tranquillity

Green Anaconda

Green Anaconda was the cute friend of Rhonda
                            Slippin’ and slidin’, so fast and strong like Honda
                                       They went to Hotel La Boanara
                                        Dined on caiman and capybara
                              And went to the Louvre to kiss La Gioconda

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