Eliezer Engerman

i am a student of the river
i watch her and listen
to the heron that catch her fish
to the churning of her canals
to the roots and branches that reach through her
and the floating piles of trash that hang on their slimy fingers

i try to learn her way with wildlife 
i want to be home to fish and birds
to feed them with the rushing currents of my body
i want to build canals and let my waters slowly reclaim them
rotting the wood and catching the garbage before the heron do
i want to nourish the earth around me
to grow strong trees with little grey squirrels
and for them not to fear me as they do now

so gaze into my murky depths
so make your wishes on my currents, fill my body with your trash
and i’ll gather it all, keep it safe

let me be at peace with what the world has done to me