1A Antlion
1A, Ant lion of the underworld, patiently waiting
The antlion (Myrmeleon species) is a solitary predator of dry, sandy habitats worldwide, famous for its larval stage: a cunning "doodlebug" that digs perfect conical pits in loose soil to trap ants and other small insects. Burrowing backwards with spade-like jaws, it creates a silent, geometric death trap.
Antlion
A lone lion of the
underworld I am,
A creature of the first letter
A, number One
I carve my kingdom
in the dust:
a perfect pit,
the silent gateway
to the dark beneath
your trembling feet.
Beneath the sun-baked
mirror of sand,
I spiral my body, backwards
in patient geometry,
each grain a sacrament,
each slope a promise
that the unwary ant
will tumble
into my waiting,
maw.
Here in the hush
of the subterranean realm,
I am both architect
and executioner,
my spade-like forelegs
heaving earth
as priests
heave prayers,
and the world
above fades to myth.
As do I to them.
As do I, to them.
For months,
I linger in my earthen throne,
a slumbering fury
in linen of sand,
until the final molt arrives
and I ascend
wings trembling, delicate
to dance dusk’s pale
fires above the world.
Yet always I return
to that hollow circle,
the underworld’s
simple altar,
marked by
a single letter, A,
a solitary monument
to hunger,
and to the cunning
art of waiting.
This is the 1st animal in the memory music project.