The Scent of a Lady Bug

Really? I said, they have a scent?

Yes, said my son,

they smell sort of like fireflies.

Who could imagine that?

The window sill of his room

was a gridlock of marching lady bugs,

and more on the floor.

I saved two from drowning in a glass of water –

well, one was dead.

The stillness of her legs,

of the orange-shellac shell with yellow spots –

A style still all the rage.

Very hip, very mod.

But in a week or so

the bodies were piled like a Volkswagen

scrap yard.

I had no idea they have a scent.

Of course, everyone knows the

scent of fireflies.