In Life and Death

Stagmomantis carolina

March 28th 2024

I once found a praying mantis, colorless, between the slats of my deck, blending in with the worn, weathered wood beneath my feet. This is where he laid to rest.

I collected him up gently into my fingertips, his wings splaying out in the cool breeze, and brought him into my home, where I pinned his fragile wings and corpse to an old bit of canvas.

This is where his body now rests; in connection and healing and life, behind a fragile piece of glass.

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