"Summer Spell for George in Chicago"

Alice Costas

Find the boat with six sails like segments of a lemon near the lake.

Seven salmon gutted at the grocery down the alley, even the slate backed prawns, stewed with Mom's knotted pearl necklace and vinegar. Stir in the scab from your knee.

At Montrose Beach, the man with a five-pronged crown on his stomach points. Two rope lengths down and across from the bleached building, the blue Lincoln. Move your hand like a lobster. We've found it before. Remember, we're swimming this way.

What grains can we conjure from this water? What wheat does the city grow? That year my waist was shaped like a crocodile's, yours like a duck's.