Eulogy for the Caterpillars That Died on my Back Porch
What happened?
They were fine yesterday
Housed in a lovely box
Topped by netting,
Fresh leaves to chew
Safe from predators
When last spied alive
one was hanging from the netting
and refused to let go,
all its tiny feet clinging to the fine strands
Another, the largest, hanging upside down from a leaf
wriggling this way and that
presumably molting for its last time
The last two perched on milkweed leaves,
resting, perhaps, after eating through more greenery
I rushed home
expecting to see the biggest one
hanging in a J, or maybe a chrysalis already formed
and the others happily munching away
Instead, the hanging caterpillar was lifeless
as were the other three,
blackened and shriveled and lying sideways
on the white paper towels
leaves still there for the eating,
and no sign of foul play
I'm sorry, so sorry!
I thought I was protecting them
from fowl and foul weather alike
leaving them under the awning
on the glass table, on the back porch
Perhaps the sun was too strong
the heat too oppressive
their home, too inhospitable
Whatever the reason,
they suffered an inglorious end
the largest, dumped into the yard
the others rolled into the paper towels and thrown into the trash
the box relegated to the laundry room
Reminding me of my failure
with every load of dirty clothes.
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