Over Christmas, my son Jude and I went to the Field Museum and saw a fascinating exhibit on bio-luminescent creatures. I learned a lot about fireflies and many other beings of the sea. So, I thought I’d try to do something different and work it into some kind of poem. To me, it feels like something Tom Waits could sing
Femme Fatale (A Nature Poem)
Dancing luminescence
Engaging desperation
Striving to attract his only
One. cycles upon cycles
Friends flash in tandem
Wingmen working hard
To help a lonely brother out
Through the dew she sends
A message, mixing signals
With a cloak of carved deception
Looking to the future
Generations on the prowl
Following pages of the past,
In a pre-determined dance
He didn’t get off the short bus
At Rush Street at Midnight
Only to be taken for a ride.
But, he’s got no chance
She knows exactly what will happen
Behind the shadows of the night
Between two fireflies
Doug Hoekstra 