Poem of the Day: “Poetry for the Insects of this World” by David Pring-Mill, Frequent Contributor and Poet of the Week

Songs of Eretz Poetry Review is pleased to present “Poetry for the Insects of this World” by David Pring-Mill, a Songs of Eretz Frequent Contributor and this week’s Poet of the Week.  A biography of the poet may be found in the “About Our Editor & Frequent Contributors” section.

Poetry for the Insects of this World

David Pring-Mill

For ants:

A morning is revealed.

In the comforts of home,

I grab my beard trimmer.

After I shave, the little hairs

scatter

in the sink basin,

creeping up

against white ceramic.

on first impression,

they look like ants.

and they were on my face.

For a wasp:

You crawl

on my takeout sushi, avoiding

wasabi.

I swipe, indirectly

at the generality of air

near narrowed stripes

of yellow, black;

and we play

the game of enemies,

each anticipating…

You land again,

I swipe again.

A clear idea forms,

And I take

the transparent cover

from my takeout case,

and place

it over you,

pinning

frantic flight

against picnic table.

Observing panic, then patience,

I finish my food;

I free you.

You're liberated now,

Free to parasitize,

To prolong

an ancient ecology.

For a ladybug:

Ah, dear ladybug,

your life's value

is widely respected,

with flamboyance

as your saving grace.

More adored

than the average beetle,

you are a testament

to embellishment.

(And sometimes,

you eat aphids.)

Because of you,

we reconsider

the stylistic impressions

we make.

For the housefly:

People feel wise,

agile, and accomplished

when they catch or swat you

on the first attempt.

For you,

there is little novelty

in this.

For mosquitoes:

My fellow humans:

Did you know

only female mosquitoes

imbibe blood?

So every time

you slap one

on your skin,

you are being a misogynist.

Poet's Notes:  I believe that poetry can be a vehicle for humor. Therefore, I wrote a poetic tribute to some insects.