Pond water

I swam

Straight to the middle 

of a lake arrived from tears

sweat, from long hauls over ramps and roads 

swinging from my small town 

We have been surviving off this water for generations.

We drink it, bottle it and bathe in it as well 

maybe we shouldn’t  

I know for a fact I have saved two souls

my mother is a death doula

collecting confessions 

to melt in the mud

In the middle of the water I saw a mirrored vanity

a bit too on the nose 

gold crowns and a dentist pulled tooth 

combs and jewelry and a Chanel double CC blush 

opened and used

only the best for my grandmas 

my aunties

those who presumably owned this piece

Laid on the vanity 

‘A promise land’

Wet

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Thinking of the painting I saw in the Midway Airport depicting a stream with a vanity in the middle of it. Above the vanity, in cursive the painting said "A Promised Land"

Thinking of the Kafue River in Zambia that dried overnight a few days ago due to chemical waste from a Chinese mining company.