The Arrangement - Kristin Powers

Acrylic on Canvas
16" x 20"
 
My Underworld
By Susie H. Baxter
 
My name is curlytopus and I live on the planet of Spartanea. Our star Celesty plays a role in photosynthesis as does your sun on earth. But Celesty burns so brightly she would blind me if not for zillions of plankton that drift about my fluid underworld.  
I am unique in this space, thanks to the DNA inherited from my mother, who is a rich cobalt blue, and her mate, who blends with the waving eelgrass. He caught her unaware one evening. They had only a one-minute encounter—totally unromantic, she said—but long enough to produce me. So, far be it from me to complain about my dad’s slyness.  
As a youngster, I wanted to be the same color as my grayish friends, instead of my unusual hue. I wished to have myself completely tattooed as I hear humans do on earth. Now that I am mature, though, I am proud to be uniquely turquoise. I’m quite handsome, don’t you think?
Three years ago, I moved out and away from my mom’s strong tentacles and found this new place of my own. Nobody yells at me here. All night long if I wish, I can bounce off the walls of my room, once painted maroon. And I can blow as many bubbles as I like, just for the fun of watching them float upward and tap my companion Ceilia on the cheek.  Sometimes when my bubbles burst in Ceilia’s face, she sneezes. So I am now in the process of making her a mask in case Covid comes our way.