Straw & Worms
Walking down the street I saw
What looked to be like a brown straw
It might have been some chewed up hay
Or dried up grass, but it rained away.
Two more steps, did not notice before
What looked to be like a brown worm
It looked to be stepped on and torn
Twenty steps, saw fifteen more.
The Wabash River dried last week
The ozone layer’s much too weak
Tripped on the river’s roots today
No plants around, just roots and clay
One more look, all overgrown
What looked to be like muddy bones
They looked like seeds the Reaper sown
Twenty looks, sixteen unknowns.
What looked to be like a brown straw
It might have been some chewed up hay
Or dried up grass, but it rained away.
Two more steps, did not notice before
What looked to be like a brown worm
It looked to be stepped on and torn
Twenty steps, saw fifteen more.
The Wabash River dried last week
The ozone layer’s much too weak
Tripped on the river’s roots today
No plants around, just roots and clay
One more look, all overgrown
What looked to be like muddy bones
They looked like seeds the Reaper sown
Twenty looks, sixteen unknowns.
Susan Wu is a junior at Purdue University studying computer science. She was a first reader for Orion's Belt magazine from June to late August and wrote as a journalist intern for the Purdue Exponent. She writes short stories and poetry in her free time.