Creeping Things
Footsteps creep by outside, military-style boots.
Breathe slowly.
Militia, looking for conscripts.
Or target practice.
Stomach rumbles. It’s been hours.
Low voices.
So hungry.
Moving away.
Something creeps across your hand.
You grab it instinctively.
It squirms.
You stuff it in your mouth.
Crunchy.
Suddenly you’re a kid again, hunting crickets in the forest.
Especially in that cave halfway up Lion Hill.
The perfect hiding place.
If you could get there now.
You creep to the back door.
A crawl to the trees, then up to the cave.
There’s fresh water there.
And as many crickets as you can eat.
Daily writing prompt
Which food, when you eat it, instantly transports you to childhood?
The Green-Walled Treehouse 
I so love how you turned your piece into a poem…looks so clean, each line.
I love the word squirm since, I think collectively we’ve all had that feeling at some time. And crickets…you made me remember Camp Warmaug in Kent, Connecticut sleeping in a tent while they sang and warbled like they smoked too much, rocking me and the other 10 year-old girls to sleep. The Tom Waits of creatures.
Really love your talent for creating such a vision from Roger’s photo. Nicely done. 🙂
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Thank you, my friend. That’s a great description of the crickets. I love it. 🙂
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An escape, to childhood. Lovely
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Thanks, Neil!
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Gripping. And different. Good one.
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Thanks, Trish. I’m glad you liked it. Thanks for reading.
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An effective layout that adds to the fragmentary nature of thoughts. Manages to turn a horror scenario into a childhood game – if only life could be that innocent.
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Thanks, Iain. Yeah, I thought I’d try something different with this one.
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Returning to your childhood thoughts in times of stress makes an effective piece of reflection on life.
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Reminds me of my recent watch of “Alone.” A cave with fresh water and ample food source sounds like an excellent place to wait it out.
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yeah, if you get hungry enough, anything can become food.
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Great write 🙌
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Thanks! I’m glad you liked it.
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All the foods I hate, like potato soup, crunchy pork-n-beans, mac-n-cheese, and turnips! LOL
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Something runs across my hand, the last place it goes is in my mouth. Trust me. I can never be that hungry.
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oh crickets, and i mean it as a compliment. 🙂
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Militia, looking for conscripts. Or target practice. Yoiks! That’s a creepy thing in itself. And I’d have to be mighty hungry to eat crickets.
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Yeah, it’s a pretty dark premise, not one I have any experience with but that happens in some places, unfortunately. I’ve eaten fried crickets before and they were good if you don’t get a leg stuck in your throat. More of a novelty than a go-to for me though. 🙂
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Yea…no…I’m going back home for a pb&j
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🙂 Yeah, that sounds a bit better, haha.
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Dear David,
That was a unique story. Imaginative. Criquets? Eeeeeeeew.
Recently I made my mother’s cheese blintz recipe. No one made them like she did. Yeah that first bite took me right back to childhood. 😉
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Tastes and smells have a strong memory connection. Not that eating crickets would remind me of my childhood, but I’m sure for some people. They’re a pretty common snack in a lot of places. But yes, I’d go for the cheese blintz first. 🙂
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Wow, great description! I could feel the intensity in your writing, great work!
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Thank you so much. I’m glad you liked it. 🙂
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good job, have a good day
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