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The Trail: A Poem by Poonam Kakodkar

My footsteps echo in the empty corridor,
I suddenly halt and look down for no explicable reason,
Just next to my feet was an ongoing trail,
A well planned, synchronized train of tiny black ants

I was down on my knees spying,
On these industrious ants,
Who didn’t even pause to look at me,
As they carried their precious treasure.

And what a treasure it was!
Carried by an army of dextrous ants
The carcass of a beautiful grasshopper,
Its pale green wings still luminous in the ray of sunshine

Hardworking, focused ants,
In their infinite wisdom
Playing their ephemeral role,
In the pre-ordained circle of life.