Paguroidea

Hermit Crab
Decapoda Crustaceans of Paguroidea
Fighting over shells
Naked, soft and competitive
Looking for a new home
Soon to grow out from
Mama & Papa crab will watch as their baby
grows out of their shell
They seem him find empty tin cans for shells and watch him
as he exchanges his shells with his friends and strangers
to find
one that gets a shell bigger than him.

Such a foolish crab.

An idiot; anomaly of the family
Will he ever grow into it?
My hermit crab,
will you ever learn?
Home is where the heart is
But hearts are not found in shells
So, where is yours?

Before I Fall

I will put your bones to sleep
within your body, tuck them into you.

I will kiss them when they rebel against your skin
and hold them close to me.

I will greet them everyday
as if they were my best friends
and I will kiss them every time I see them
as if meeting them after a long time.

I will run my hands around your body
until I know every bone
and every bone knows me
until every bone responds to me
the way friendly neighbhours do
when out for a walk.

I will put your bones to sleep
within your body, tuck them into you.

I will kiss them goodnight
before I fall.