A snail stranded in slow time, one of many
stops along a winding garden road.

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Brown garden snail | Cornu aspersum
Waiting for cupid, she releases old photons
into the night, commanding lovers
to change direction.

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Firefly | Lampyridae | Photinus pyralis
Strangers meet for the first time, colliding
in a spectacular B-movie climax.

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Sparrow | Passer domesticus
Flying too close to the sun,
closing her eyes,
a thousand stars burn.

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Honey bee | Apis mellifera
The newest mantis in a rush to meet the new world,
unsure if she is predator or prey.
The mantids started emerging yesterday. A busy spring,
500 egrets and thousands of mantis babies.

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Chinese mantis | Tenodera aridifolia sinensis