A Small Surprise

On my morning walk, which is

Adjacent to the river,

A small surprise is sometimes what

The city does deliver.

 

So yesterday, I heard a thump,

Metallic, so I slowed,

Expecting that a hubcap flew

From somewhere on the road.

 

Instead, I saw a sewer cover

Quaking as it rose

And crashed back down above a spot

Where the East River flows.

 

Thought number 1: a creature

Would be rising from the deep

And then his scaly self into

My neighborhood would creep.

 

Thought number 2: a prisoner

(Like “Shawshank”) would break free

Because from Rikers Island

There’s a chance that it could be.

 

Thought number 3: the river (high)

Would suddenly erupt

And shoot that cover skyward

In a manner most abrupt.

 

In any case, I hurried on

Without a backward glance,

Not willing, having had those thoughts,

To take the slightest chance.