Insects

from 20 Years Frozen for All Time by swampmessiah

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lyrics

They heave through the screen,
the largest, while the smallest
fly in like invited guests.
The cat goes wild following them,
jumping and grabbing for them.
Some circle the bare light bulbs.
Some drop in spirals or waves
toward the scent of my blood.
The air is cooler.
I’m silently restless.
I think about bed.
Frogs by the pond singing for love,
the hypnotic rumble of a machine…
Thank god the dog isn’t on guard duty,
He sleeps on hay under the porch
instead of spewing his guard bark.
I hate to lie down
when I can’t sleep—
and if I could sleep
I wouldn’t wake in time
to collect the dreams.
In the screen, the cat has ripped a hole
and the lights must be turned off—
what graceless armored creatures
rule the earth, these insects,
their jittery staccato motions
catching us off guard.

credits

from 20 Years Frozen for All Time, released March 5, 2016

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about

swampmessiah Saint Paul, Minnesota

I was born in Duluth, Minnesota in 1957. I've been drawing all my life and painting since about 1975; I started writing poetry and rants in, maybe, 1976; since 1996 I've been recording those poems and rants, usually with a "musical" backing.
I live in Saint Paul, Minnesota. My partner and I have two children. I have a day job that is in no way artistic. ... more