Swatting Flies

by Guy Biederman

I stand in the kitchen perfectly still.
My white terry cloth robe has a
kleenex in one pocket and a bic
lighter in the other.

A fly zips crazily past my head,
bounces off the kitchen window
(that’s got to hurt)
and heads right for me.

The ancient Samurai Myoshi
was said to capture flies with
one hand and his eyes closed.

I’m cheating. A little. Not only
are my eyes open, I have a
fly swatter from Ace Hardware
in each hand. To each his own.

The fly buzzes my ear and makes
the mistake of landing on the
drainboard. I come down with a
right swat, followed by a left,
while the dog and cat watch from
a safe distance. As does Mrs. Meriwether
from her kitchen next door.

But the fly didn’t get to be large
by being slow or stupid. He lights
out for the livingroom, and I,
a House Samurai, have no choice
but to follow.