CICADA SEASON

Jun 6

Written By Gigi Lopez

CICADA SEASON by Apple Gilmore

Nature’s fearsome nymph emerges from the Underworld

Nine lifetimes spent waiting for the rapture

It comes in with the rain,

A buzzing typhoon that leaves behind more than it brings

The sounds of summer

Heat swells and thickens between golden rays of sun

Sweetness seeps from every pore on Earth –

Sweet nectar, thick honey

Offerings for the winged gods

A fruitful present for a fleeting presence

Human hearts beat in cages of bone

The cicadas wear theirs on their shells;

Teneral vulnerability comes with the promise of being

Left behind, a chance to turn around and see a ghost

With a familiar face

Summer’s end takes more than it gives

Empty shells cover the earth,

All brown and black and amber

Poor imitations of dead leaves

Both susurrate the same under heavy footsteps

Autumn hangs in stagnant silence

A reminder of cicadas, long gone

Gravity