PRAYING MANTIS
my father's back to me/ digging in the front garden/
with a spade/ planting the jagged concrete pieces
in/ & introduced trees later to be trimmed/ & fat
cold earthworms to be split by the hook/ i watched
as he unearthed a giant praying mantis/
as green
as the front lawn ripe with insect movement & heat/
like the sound of concrete & grass whistling if the
hose was left running on it/ the mantis faced my
father standing upright & began to box the shadow
of a huge man/
dad stopped digging with a breath
out & raised his left hand/ the mantis swayed from
side to side as if trying to confuse my father or
duck blows/ suddenly i saw the mantis as six feet
high & my father as quite small/
i grabbed hold of
guenther's hand & took him around the side trellis/
i told him the new word/ i whispered: my father is
a shit/ guenther's thin blonde hair pricked his ear
as he jumped/ like when i asked my nan about the
word cunt/ who told you that word?/ the kids at
school/ well it's a very bad word/
i looked up at
her/ is it worse than fuck?/ yes it's a very very
bad word/ so don't let me catch you saying it/ &
stop picking your nose or it will end up like a
black fella's/ & don't go cross eyed or the wind
will change direction/
& be good or santa won't
come/ & don't cry or the disprin won't work/ & don't
be naughty or god will punish you/ guenther went &
told my father/ who looked about to sweep the mantis
into oblivion with the spade/ instead dad threw it
down on the grass clippings/
& i raced inside to my
bedroom/ & hid behind the wooden door & his heavy
footsteps down the hallway/ he knocked me down with
blows to the head/ black thuds to a red face on a
short green dress/
outside i could imagine guenther
satisfied/ & i knew the praying mantis would be
swaying to the breeze/ about to take flight/ a
moment away from death/ on razor edged legs/
barely touching down on the upturned earth | 
