Emirati Glitterati…sold their soul
All for an arty farty party so dull
Each troll got a very simple goal
Going for gold their Faustian role
Befriend astro knoll on pretend atoll
Look at me vanity but never a lull
Narcissist fantasy look like a doll
Maybe botox detox don't annul
Tax free captivity in goldfish bowl
Not like before well war takes its toll
Rakes get the shakes out of control
Save me plea on every single scroll
Fakes & flakes on the make must cull
Hard not to laugh at whole rigmarole
Tragic they chose their Arabic hellhole
Goodbye to Dubai magic back to Hull
Mull over becoming a prole on the dole
If there was a poll would say Tres Drole
Or on insular influencer peninsula "LOL"
There was, and is, a dark black hole resides in her somewhere;
he was not sure if it was in her heart or in her soul
but he was gravitated to her captivating stare
attracted to the only Black Moor in the goldfish bowl
as were many others clipping her event horizon
she, bending the light, the truth, the lies; until non escape
and he was never clear if he was father, lover, son
or simply, to her, yet another planetary ape.
I was seven, barefoot in the hallway,
nose pressed to the brass knob of the guest room—
she’d left the key out,
but I wanted to see through,
the way you want to see the belly of a piano,
strings naked, all hammer and throat.
The maid caught me,
her voice full of linen snaps and starch—
What are you doing, Miss?
I lied. Said I was looking for the cat.
There was no cat.
Only the shimmer of her hair under her cap,
and the broken goldfish bowl of my curiosity,
spilled on the carpet of my chest.
That night the sky turned dark like a locked door.
I thought about the keyhole,
how it had looked back at me.
How secrets sit still like fish
in the murk of people’s lives,
waiting for someone small and stupid
to come tap the glass.
And I,
with my hollow hands and soft mouth,
wanted only to know
what lived behind things.
I am feeling watched Goldie confided to Diamond Blue.
I don’t know about that, but the humans are long overdue.
The humans don’t worry me said Flash, the other goldfish.
I am worried about those furry ones, she said with a swish.
Diamond Blue’s eyesight was not good, so he was not worried.
The two cats watching jumped down and promptly scurried.
When they heard a car door slam, for they were not supposed to be
Anywhere near the goldfish bowl, so said the boss, Grandma Lee.
Kitten pauses over fishbowl because,
it can't stand wetting its dry and clean paws.
So the goldfish are safe, free from the jaws.
And don't they know it, as they flap applause,
When they nonchalantly swim with no cause
For fear of cat, which obeys nature's laws.
Satisfied cat can sleep at the drop of a hat.
She can squeeze herself into those, this and that.
We find her asleep this morning in a goldfish bowl.
She is snoring away, like a fisherman without a pole.
Yesterday she was asleep in my underwear drawer.
She patted down my unmentionables until they were sore.
The day before she was asleep in a milk crate outside.
Luckily we knew she sometimes chooses this place to hide.
Our cat is unruffled, she can sleep anywhere.
With loud snoring sounds, she shows no one a care.
She is the cat who only puts up with us two times a day.
When were put out her kibble or put water in her electric tray.
My heart sore liken a goldfish bowl
an aquarium filled with neon tetra fishes so
you are skimming, swimming, through my heart
in due process
yet ever so smart
my love for you is blue
your favorite color is to
royalty astounded your heart
found it I cherish your colors hue
you my heart beats Forever Blue
5/31/22
Written by James Edward Lee Sr.2022©
Try to imagine
a fish that’s all alone
I’m swimming in circles
In my tiny goldfish bowl
An aquarium
Is what I dream of
Eternally
And there’s a big square box
Beneath the tree
And it’s addressed to me
The label says
Happy Christmas Goldie
From your family
It’s Christmas
22 January 2021
Contest: Can You Imagine
Sponsor: Constance La France
A fish swimming in a big pool
Thought to itself this is cool.
It makes a fish feel complete and whole
An improvement from a goldfish bowl.
As the fish swam away to join the school
He prayed for survival in this big pool
The Goldfish Bowl
Once injected with water, sorrow becomes colorless and tasteless
Inside the glass bowl, all lives
only live seven seconds
The same route, again and again --
The beginning is the end. Stubborn as Sisyphus
Eyes watered and drifted away
A trace of love burns
I have a sister on Flower Road
She is the most colorful fish in the bowl
No brand, just serve regular customers
I've always been fascinated by the sublime sense of her up-rolling eyes
In the goldfish bowl
Happiness is greater than loneliness
The men and women of Flower Road know it
When I walk by
with my head down
Stares in the dark shoot me like arrows
My sister sleeps at dawn,
wakes at night
and easy to forget all “should”
or “should not”
My life is so depressing
I feel trapped, in need of space
I need some fresh air to breathe
A gentle breeze touching my face
A taste of freedom to make me feel whole
Instead of suffocating in this human goldfish bowl
14 March 2020
Number 3
pond haiku ponder
coping with isolation
as an oasis
pond still, mirroring
dark clouds in the sky above
foreboding forecast
ripples radiate
out to the edge of the pond
bounce reverberate
surface waves ripple
images of trees on pond
ghostly wind revealed
the pond an island
in an ocean of dry land
verso about-face
the pond microcosm
trapped in tiny goldfish bowl
lives life as it is
land animals drink
from the pond without caring
what fish do in it
the pond a pockmark
on the complexion of earth
beauty spot when full
pond is frog heaven
prison for fish shrimps and snails
safe haven for birds
Was cleaning my goldfish bowl
in the bathroom one day,
put "Goldie" in the bathroom
sink temporarily to play,
Tried to hurry so I could
put her back in the bowl,
when unknowingly she leapt
like a dolphin into the commode,
Meantime, my weak bladder was a disruption,
so stopped what I was doing before it erupted,
finishing up and giving the royal flush,
not realizing Goldie was gone forever with a swift "GUSH!"
Felt guilty when I eventually found out,
should've known something was up by Goldie's pout,
if I had known would've brought her to fish therapy,
instead of accidentally having had her a burial at sea,
Then I thought maybe she's still alive,
maybe she'll be like that fish Nemo and survive,
swimming around somewhere making new friends,
hopefully not swimming into a dead end,
Wondering if she would get bullied or eaten,
I walked around sobbing like I'd been beaten,
feeling like a criminal who was pet negligent,
I finally made an appointment to see a fish therapist!
They stopped Scarborough Fair,
And the children went home
Clutching their goldfish bowl.
They'll remember the din,
The shouts and the screams
Plus their colourful win.
Or will name the bright fish,
Put the bowl on a dish,
Or sing soft of Scarborough Fair.
2/15/2015
She stood there just staring
Staring endlessly at his BIG GOOGLY EYES
He was her best friend and they were worlds apart
Separated by glass and about 20 ounces of crystal clear water
She stood there pondering what was going through his mind
He held his position swimming ever so carelessly contemplating the very same thing
She has the biggest blue eyes and she is my dearest friend!
She cares so much for me
Always watching me
Protecting me from harm
Feeding me and changing my water like clockwork
I couldn't have chosen a better friend, he thought
He surveyed the room and he surveyed her big beautiful blue eyes
He thanked the Creator for sending him a most special caregiver
Thank you, God!
She has a heart of gold!
Gwendolen Rix
12-17-14
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