Siren

This is written at the request of a friend who made me believe that mermaids really do live among us.

Vessel

She lived, run aground, survived, still
lashed to the savage bow, back nearly
broken by the time they hit land.

You are our luck, the sailors whispered;
touched lips to breast without thought, suckled
and crossed themselves as if entering a church.

She once opened her mouth to shout.
I am more than mere superstition!
I am not your goddamn church!

Throat full of sand and glass, it was so much
more painful to speak than be silent; her dry
lips bled the secret words down her chin.

Binds rotted and fell away; yet she stayed the
course, watching the stars, measuring distance,
keening and hoping for the sailors to return her luck.