An Unusual Acquaintance

On a highway day drive in April, I befriended a June bug

We got off to a tumultuous beginning

I flicked him out the driver window, but he stuck around for the ride

I tested him, he responded, I respected

He calmly clung to the rearview mirror

And we began to reveal a bit about our pasts

He said his kind gets a bad rap, are considered pests

But they didn't seem that bad to me

He said he had a bad batch with his woman, needed a new start

“I’m glad you’re headed elsewhere” he said

“Because that’s exactly where I’m headed”

He mentioned something about the ubiquitous eyes above
Something about the crows grubbing on his grubs

He told me his woman didn’t trust him anymore

She said he could no longer protect

“How can I fend off a crow?” he helplessly wondered aloud
“It’s beyond my control”

“It’s beyond your control”

He told me his name was Jim

Jim the June bug, has quite the jingle

We easily kept the conversation moving along for a bit

He was a quick witted little fellow
I wished we could have more time
But “I only have a year to live,” he said 

“I don’t have time to waste any of mine”

He reminded me of the beauty of sometimes winging it

We went along for a while " at least a mile " in silence

The comfortable kind, though

The kind only two true friends could enjoy

“Well,” he said
"This is the end"
"I guess I'll be going"

I wished him the best of luck
He did the same to me

With a flick of his wings he was gone
Now I don't know if he gracefully caught a draft
Or if he crashed his a*s right into the pavement
Ether way, Glenn H. Curtiss* would be proud

Come to think of it, I was proud of him, too

I hoped his new start was the right one
In a place where the grass is green
The lady bugs are pretty

And the crows, a little less dense

* * * * * * *

*Curtiss' "Flight of the June Bug" in 1908 was the first pre-announced flight in America. 

Reviews

[RockStep]

Love the unusual choice of metaphor, as well as the execution.

Did you start with the idea of referencing "Flight of the June Bug" and work backward from there, or did it just occur to you as you were writing this poem?

[Alex Dissing]

Thanks for the review & the kind words. I randomly came across some information about Curtis' "Flight of the June Bug" toward the end of the writing process, so I decided to incorporate it at the end.