Do not stare into the blind eyes
of the pink-fleshed singing porpoise.

You have stared down the dancing snake
but the eyes your eyes followed as they swayed
were filled with moonlight, & the song of the split —
tongue is of the earth & is a forest song
that winds about the roots of the kapok tree.

Do not stare into the blind eyes
of the singing river dolphin.

They are filled with a brightness you think
is life but is the dimness of deep rivers,
of dreams filled with the promise of a pleasure
only gods can give, & you are a child
of grass & forest, of flowers & their fruit.

Do not stare into the blind eyes
of the boto cor de rosa.

The world will turn gray & your eyes & mouth & skin
will long only for the heaviness of rivers,
& you will call eels & angel catfish cousin
& the dense song of the manatee
will blind you to the wonders of the forest.