A butterfly screams

As night gave way to first light

And the stars began to fade

Sitting by the tall tree

Near which the hibiscus flowered

With blood red petals

I heard a faint whispering

Of fluttering wings

Which caught my wandering eye

Hungering for a death’s cry


So with a quick twist

Of my nimble fingers

Its rainbow wings I tore

And when it fell to the earth

Twisting and contorting

Its ludicrous trunk

With a quick foot

I stamped out its breath


So there it was

That silly thing

With its rainbow wings

All tattered and torn

Its ugly torso

All squelched and squished

A little blot of lifeless butterfly

Baking in the morning sun


But then to my astonishment I heard

Caught within the sticky red bloom

Its silent butterfly scream

The hideous cry pierced my ears

Like a sharp rapier thrust

Which I found intolerable to bear


So with deft fingers

Again I swiped

With a butcher’s sharp knife

Now at the hibiscus bloom

That dared to dream

Of defying what I’d decreed

 And slashed and sliced

Until it lay torn to shreds

In red drops of fresh blood petals