Caiman Man
by Juanita Rey
His eyes and nostrils
float atop the surface.
The rest of him makes no sound,
no ripples.
I don’t suspect a thing.
Water is cleansing, purifying.
It’s not supposed to conceal.
He has a name
like any other man.
But his hunger
growls nameless.
I figure I’m splashing about
in perfect safety.
No caiman in this pond.
But all it takes
is one creature like him.
float atop the surface.
The rest of him makes no sound,
no ripples.
I don’t suspect a thing.
Water is cleansing, purifying.
It’s not supposed to conceal.
He has a name
like any other man.
But his hunger
growls nameless.
I figure I’m splashing about
in perfect safety.
No caiman in this pond.
But all it takes
is one creature like him.
Juanita Rey is a Dominican poet who has been in the United States for five years. Her work has been published in Pennsylvania English, Opiate Journal, Petrichor Machine, and Porter Gulch Review.