Second part, first part here.
The trains came and went,
and in less than a month
the suspicious complaining began—
The wet tourists bring nothing
and they ruin our roadsThe trains are a threat,
the sea can’t be trustedThey’re all non-believers
with no passports or papers
We built barricades and checkpoints
with chicanes in the suburbs,
and warning signs on beaches
let them know where we stood.
In English and Atlantean,
just on the off-chance.
In the end the sea’s tourists
took our message to heart,
their trains resubmerged
and never came back.
Today at the markets I ran into
a neighbor, who told me her father
was coughing up fish.
I said not to worry, it wasn’t uncommon,
and repeated the gossip I’d heard
on the streets—
Janaína, the goddess
of all the world’s waters,
would ease the condition
with prayers and a tribute,
a garland of flowers
set adrift on the waves.
safety tip
If you’re coughing up fish, and you’re not a porpoise, shark, pelican or similar, keep buckets of both fresh water and brine handy. Depending on the species, pop them in the appropriate bucket.
about
One source for ‘Dawn of the Hydrolithic Age’ was Haruki Murakami’s remarkable novel Kafka on the Shore.
artwork
The illustrations of the four elements in the Dawn of the Hydrolithic Age 1 and 2 come from the beautiful Paraty in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Possibly the digital artwork doesn’t show the town in the best light.
