“The Way the Rain Works”
By Moristotle
I’m not the only one digging in the earth this morning
My trowel unearths other diggers digging there
They wriggle, woken up or frightened
by the earth’s sudden movement.
Sometimes the edge of my tool
slices one in two, and two wrigglers
now wriggle there, their wriggling
more than twice as fast.
I hope it’s true what I’ve been told,
each half completes itself,
so I’ve not killed a creature
who wasn’t even thinking of me yet.
Not its time yet to nibble my flesh,
but soon enough will be.
The way they wiggle reminds me
of the coil and surge of snakes.
| Copyright © 2018 by Moristotle |
With apologies: the final stanza has gone through two revisions. The first version had worms merely reminding me of snakes. The second version stated or asked whether they are related (evolutionarily; they are not(*). The final version (or the current, in case I decide to revise further) has them reminding again but refrains from addressing the question of relatedness.
ReplyDelete_______________
* "Snakes and worms are not even closely related. Snakes are vertebrates (have a backbone) and reptiles while worms are invertebrates (no bones). There are a lot of differences between the two such as different circulatory systems, different nervous systems, different sensory organs." [Physics Forums]
Good on you, mate!
ReplyDelete