(based on Lydia Davis’ short story ‘Cockroaches in Autumn’)

They are so like us, despondent
And quick to scatter at
First sign of danger:
A moving hand,
A rolled-up newspaper,
A falling foot.

Disgusting as they are to us
We cannot but help
Respect their stubbornness
To live. Their
Determination
To Survive.

What better way to
Prove you live
Than not
To die?