Pet Store Fish

Leighann Summers 

Days go by in a blur 
No two different from the last 
Everything remains the same as I swim past 

Why keep me sir? 
Surely the awe will fade 
Afterall, I am manmade… 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 
To some I am seen as a catch. 
To others I am as pretty as an itchy rash. 

Fins glide through the water. 
Blues and greens flutter and flash. 
Every “breath” feels like my last. 

How long will I live? 
My stomach longs for more than shrimp. 
I have not eaten since you went on Vacay. 

Fins rot in the tank. 
Glass clouds and water stinks. 
Oh how I wish I could go down the sink. 

Light fades. 
Bags are set down and dust is disturbed. 
You look for me, but bone is found. 

Was I not good enough to be returned to the ground? 
No, water was my intended home. 
You flush my remains and I am replaced. 

Is that all I was? 
An insignificant tank dweller? 
I suppose that is the life of a pet store fish.