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Two Carp in a Bowl, by Michael Dechane

7/1/2020

8 Comments

 
Picture
Dish With Unglazed Carp, Stoneware, Longquan ware (China) Southern Song period, 12th to 13th century. Daderot / Public domain.

Two Carp in a Bowl

All day they hold their tongues
but when the last guest leaves
and the lights go off in their room
they let fly once more.

              I saw you looking at that Kali goddess today,
              ogling all those arms and legs, she says.


                            Quit your fishing and get off my scales,
                            he fires back. So what if I looked at her?
                            When was the last time you touched me?

             Suck grass, you bastard. She seethes. 
             You always act like it’s my fault
             I’m affixed to this side of our bowl.
             I want to go home, she says, and starts to cry.


                           He hates it when she does this,
                           so he yells: You think I wanted to leave?
                           I was happier in the mud under the river!

             This isn’t all about you! she screams.

And he rolls the one eye he has.
And she glares back with hers.
On and on they go in the frozen
suggestion of circling one another,
the green gulf between them never closing.

When the docent comes again,
turns on the light, they begin another day
under the reflecting glass and gaze
of happy people shuffling past
their case with its little sign:

             Celadon bowl, 12th century, China,
                           With double-fish motif in unglazed relief,
                              a symbol of marital harmony.

Michael Dechane

Michael Dechane is a graduate of Seattle Pacific University’s MFA program and a former carpenter, videographer, and speechwriter. His poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in Image, Southern Poetry Review, Cumberland River Review, and Saint Katherine Review. A native of Odessa, Florida, he currently lives in Zürich, Switzerland. 
​
8 Comments
David Belcher
7/1/2020 03:37:28 am

Wonderfully clever, both sad and funny, and tightly written. Enjoyed very much.

Reply
Michael Dechane
7/1/2020 11:25:33 am

Thank you, David! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.

Reply
Amy Billingsley
7/1/2020 12:33:20 pm

A hilarious hell. That matrimony that didn't mate. Fav lines: "I was happier in the mud under the river," and "rolls the one eye he has." I'd like a book please. Good stuff Michael, that is, if an amateur may say so. Peace.

Reply
Michael Dechane
7/1/2020 01:39:59 pm

I like that one-eyed line a lot, too :) I'm working on that book. Thanks for reading, and your encouragement, Amy!

Reply
Randy Richardson
7/1/2020 02:47:19 pm

So they were carping at one another but actually just fishing for compliments. No one pulls off the line “Suck grass, you bastard.” as well as you... and of course, Bukowski. Thanks for the slice of truth. Outstanding work. Love your perspective. Can’t wait to see more.

Reply
Michael Dechane
7/1/2020 03:34:16 pm

I can hardly believe I restrained myself from a carping pun in this poem! And yes, now that you mention it, some of this dialog is most definitely Bukowski (Via Richardson) inspired. So grateful for that! Thanks for reading and your eternal encouragement, Randy.

Reply
Courtenay
7/1/2020 04:54:38 pm

Wonderful encapsulation of marriage and love. So funny, and heartrending, too. Forever frozen in time, these lovers and now your words. Thank you.

Reply
Michael Dechane
7/2/2020 02:54:57 am

Thanks, Courtenay! I hadn't thought of my words becoming frozen in the same way the fish seem, but I love that idea. Cheers!

Reply

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