Goldie’s chin

once upon a time

that would have been my dog’s

snout on the kitchen table  reaching and

tonguing leftovers left near the edge

this day it was a goldfish

who chined a lily pad to get a piece

of fish food lying on it

if that had been Amber  I’d have yelled

and she would have low-tailed it

to a back bedroom to hide

but this fishy behavior was so

impressive I wanted to reach in

and shake his fin

instead   

I watched him sink back into the water

as the round leaf rose back to the surface

cleaner than a licked dinner plate