Grasshopper on Glass

Waiting for the shop to open,

I espied a great grey grasshopper,

Blown by some quirk of December wind,

Upon the sepia glass of the unopened shop.

It was alive,

This magnificent locust,

This child of the desert,

This Biblical character,

This subject of story and song.

It was alive, and

Moved its perfect mandible

As if to put all doubt at rest,

Flexing its wonderful joints,

Bringing up to its curious mouth,

Some unseen creature,

Which it did consume.

--December 20, 2013