The Aquarium

They take us to the aquarium
Because the zoo is closed for the day
Due to the fact
That the elephants
Do not like Thursday afternoons

So the zoo must close
To please
The surly elephants

We arrive at the aquarium
And Sally demands to see a penguin
Before she will even get off the bus

So one of the aquarium attendants
Boards the bus
Holding a baby penguin
Named Tonto
Who Sally adopts as her own

She puts him in her backpack
Where he is kept warm
By failed pop quizzes
And we all get off the bus

Upon entering the aquarium
We all rush to the shark tank
Because they are just about to feed the shark
A soy manatee
In an effort to wean him off
His lust for blood

But we are disappointed to find out
That the shark tank
Is closed
Due to the fact
That the shark is suffering
From a toothache
And a shark with a toothache
Is not a happy shark

To avoid making him feel embarrassed
They have curtained off the shark tank
And the soy manatee has been put in the tank
With the regular manatees
Where she has already been mated with--

Twice

Before lunch we attend the dolphin show
Where the dolphins put on a lovely production
Of 'Babes in Arms'

The ingenue was not what we would call convincing
But the hoop-jumping during 'My Funny Valentine'
Was brilliant enough
To make up for the casting choice

At lunch Sally shows us
How she's already taught Tonto
To identify her as his mother
And to play dead
In the event that a predator
Gets inside her backpack

After lunch
We go to the seal pit
Where the seals are having a prom

We know it's a prom
Because there's music playing
And all the seals are swaying back and forth
While the older seals watch
With teary eyes

Knowing their babies are all grown up

We vote for prom king and queen
And when the winner is announced
Some of the seals seem to have hurt feelings
But without disappointment
Seals will stay sheltered
And end up being eaten by polar bears

At the end of the day
We go to penguin exhibit
Where Sally decides that Tonto
Should be with his biological family
Because society will never understand
Or fully accept and welcome
A penguin raised by a seven-year-old

When we board the bus
We show each other our souvenirs
Purchased on the way out of the aquarium

Some of us pencil sharpeners
Shaped like turtles

Some of us have mouse pads
With otters on them

But Sally has a stuffed animal
A penguin, that looks very much like Tonto
And we see her put him in her backpack
Being careful not to catch his wings
With the zipper

And the bus pulls away
And drives us back into the ocean
Where our parents wait by the coral
To ask us how our day was
And find out how life looks
When you're looking at it
From the outside in