A Jelly-Fish

Visible, invisible,
A fluctuating charm,
An amber-colored amethyst
Inhabits it; your arm
Approaches, and
It opens and
It closes;
You have meant
To catch it,
And it shrivels;
You abandon
Your intent—
It opens, and it
Closes and you
Reach for it—
The blue
Surrounding it
Grows cloudy, and
It floats away
From you.

Credit

This poem is in the public domain. Published in Poem-a-Day on August 30, 2015, by the Academy of American Poets.

About this Poem

“A Jelly-Fish” was published in The Lantern (Spring 1909).