Last Fall, I responded to a poor soul, who after consuming too much beer, fell on the loose gravel of an asphalt street, and suffered a head wound. As the EMTs were loading the man into the ambulance, an odd motion caught my eye. A small, flittering object scythed downward and landed between the large drops of fresh blood. I turned on my flashlight, took a few steps forward, and bent down to see a praying mantis the color of bone with eyes abysmally black examining the blood. Shifting in a otherworldly fashion, its forearms touched each small pool. The insect seemed like some alien priest of death and pain looking for auguries in a blood sacrifice. How would the up coming winter be? I watched the strange service for a few minutes, and then lifted the creature to the nearby husks of spent wild flowers, so it would not be another casualty of the street.
Beautifully written.
Stopping by from Jade's blog.
Posted by: Peppypilotgirl | April 04, 2008 at 04:00 PM
Found your blog via PF. Glad I did. Starting from the beginning, read this post and immediately thought of Kent Anderson, Night Dogs. Kindred spirit looking forward to reading through.
Posted by: TL | July 10, 2019 at 06:14 AM
@ TL,
Thank you, the blog has its ebbs and flows. I hope you enjoy.
Cheers,
RD
Posted by: RD | July 10, 2019 at 12:48 PM