Silver If He's Free

At dusk, I dreamed I caught the silver
carp,
and then I set him free.
The hazy sun pierced through
the dying trees
and on the Schuylkill's shore.
I stood there on the bow and
waved to you;
you wore a white fur—
a dewy white fur coat.

Sundown the moon
glows dusty gold!
Midnight the moon
shines ashy white!

The bow pushed through a field
of jellyfish
as big as dancing lions.
The carp, on full moons, sheds his
silver scales
like floating treasure coins.
We traced their trail right to the
silver carp,
and then we caught him,
and then we pulled him up.

Sundown the moon
glows dusty gold!
Midnight the moon
shines ashy white!

We filled a bathtub with the sea
so that our treasure fish could breathe.
The silver carp looked up at me,
said he's only silver if he's free.

We heaved the carp over the
starboard side
but kept a scale for luck.
At dusk I dreamed I caught the
silver carp
and brought him back to you,
but you, yourself, are much too
far away:
a silver, slender—
an almost-captured dream.

Sundown the moon
glows dusty gold!
Midnight the moon
shines ashy white!
Sundown the moon
glows dusty gold!
Midnight the moon
shines ashy white!