I laid awake on a late summer night in August last week. The breeze through my window was refreshing and cool. Suddenly I heard a cricket. I hadn’t recalled hearing a cricket all summer and enjoyed its night time symphony. Here is a poem that I wrote the next morning inspired by this tiny musician.

Cricket song by Yvette R. Toko

Screech, screech, screech

nocturnal being

announcing its song to the neighborhood

and other night critters

screech, screech, screech

I’m here, yeah, over here

come closer

I’ll play the silent game with you now…

Ha! Gotcha, I’m still here

screech, screech, screech