ABPA - Australian Bush Poets Association

The Lantern Fish

The lantern fish must do all right.
He's never caught without a light.
Even though his world is wet,
Sodden matches pose no threat.

He has a lantern on his head
(Great for reading books in bed),
Which leaves his fins completely free
To navigate throughout the sea.

If one day he felt the urge
To spend some cash - perhaps to splurge -
Inside his local camping store,
Perhaps he'd buy a tent, and more;

A sleeping bag, a little stove
(These shops are like a treasure trove);
A map and compass, water-rated
(Former would be laminated);

Dehydrated food perhaps;
It's true he lives off ocean scraps,
And though it would be re-hydrated,
Palates are most surely sated

By a many varied diet.
He might simply want to try it.
One thing I'll not be recantin'...
NEVER would he buy a lantern!

Stephen Whiteside 27.02.2013

and I bet he never carried a torch for any female fishies - one day though he might see the light

Your mind works in mysterious ways Stephen I like that

Cheers

Maureen

Thanks, Maureen. I guess his female friends carry their own torches - perhaps they've found a different metaphor.