The lone cicada wing caught my eye,
light reflecting off its surface
as it lay still on the kitchen floor,
its unexplained dismemberment
belying its brief, frenzied existence.
I rubbed it gently between two fingers
feeling its crinkly cellophane surface
so thin and weightless,
barely able to lift the body it carried.
A tracery of veins with dark branching lines
holding the membrane together
like lead in a stained glass window—
delicate yet durable.
Its time here is done,
leaving behind a part of itself
to be admired and examined.
Questions remain about its creator,
the creation of all things.
What can I leave behind?
Nothing as lovely as this wing.
Just these words put on paper
noting the cicada was here,
and so was I.
Michele Malinchak is a 37-year resident of Haycock Township where she writes, paints and gardens. She’s a freelance writer for Bucks County Magazine and in 2020 won first place in Pennwriters Annual Writing Contest for Novel Beginnings. She meets regularly with her local writing group whose members offer countless inspiration and guidance.
Poet’s Corner is curated by Bucks County Poet Laureate Tom Mallouk and supported by a grant to the Bucks County Herald Foundation made possible by Marv and Dee Ann Woodall.
Note from the curator. Submissions to Poet’s Corner are closed at the moment. Poems have been selected that will take Poet’s Corner to mid-February 2024, which is when funding for this initiative will expire.
I am hoping the Herald will decide to continue the project but it will likely require funds to cover the cost. I am pursuing funding possibilities, but nothing is guaranteed. You can help by reaching out to Editor John Anastasi at janastasi@buckscountyherald.com and letting him know how much you value Poet’s Corner.
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