The Uninvited

 



The Uninvited


In autumn, small creatures

Seek refuge in our house.


Open a door and a solitary fly zooms in,

Patrolling in tight circles for a crumb on the floor,

Open a window and a homeless spider slides in,

Eight-footing it toward the nearest crack.


Field mice let themselves in

Who knows how? —

And make love all night long

In leafy nests behind the wall.


Beneath our deck four skunks repose

In heaps of black and white,

Prepared to bundle the winter away,

Fragrantly.

“Uninvited!” I say.

“Uninvited guests!

“Shut the doors

“And nail the windows down!”

Weapons in hand, I pause.

What will this winter bring me?

Like these small folk,

I may need a refuge, too.


Perhaps I can endure these uninvited guests

Till spring.




Wayne Danielson

November 15, 1999