Devouring the Salmon

In all the seven long years
of fishing for the salmon
of knowledge, Finn,
each time I tugged your line,
you threw me back in,
my silver-scaled tail shimmering,
pert breasts pearled with water.
You had no idea what you were missing.

Years passed, I dived and swam,
and eventually you snagged the salmon,
gave it to your servant, Fionn,
with strict instructions: cook it, don’t eat it.
But while you waited in anticipation,
your servant burnt his finger, sucked
it to ease the pain–and that was that.
All the salmon’s wisdom in one drop of fat.

You were wise enough to see
knowledge sparkle in Fionn’s eyes,
but you were also wise
enough to believe the truth
when he explained,
offered him the whole fish to eat,
a generous gesture,
so he became your master.

If only you had reeled me in,
a freshwater sister to the salmon,
you might have learnt
that you don’t have to be burnt
by knowledge. Just a little singe,
a little fun with a mermaid,
and you wouldn’t have had to binge
and eat the whole thing.

Kim M. Russell, 12^th April 2025

*^{Close-up of the Big Fish or Salmon of Knowledge sculpture in Belfast.}*
*^{Image is in the public domain.}*

On Day Twelve of NaPoWriMo, the daily resource is the collection of the American Visionary Art Museum, and the optional prompt is a challenge to write a poem inspired by Wallace Stevens’ poem, ‘Peter Quince at the Clavier’, a “complex poem that not only heavily features the idea of music, but is structured like a symphony. Its four sections, like symphonic movements, play with and expand on an overall theme, using the story of Susannah and the Elders as a backdrop.”

We should write poems that make reference to one or more myths, legends, or other well-known stories; feature wordplay (including rhyme); mix formal and informal language; and contain multiple sections that play with a theme, as well as incorporating at least one abstract concept, such as desire, sorrow, pride, whimsy, etc.

I love Irish mythology and chose the Salmon of Knowledge. My poem is nothing like the example by Wallace Stevens, and I’m not sure if I’ve included all the required elements, but I had fun writing it from the point of view of a made-up mermaid.