Author's Notes:

Some kind of AP Lang & Comp assignment. Thought I'd share it with you. Based on a reading we did near the beginning of the year (divide it into the same parts), and the subject was inspired by Mayfly, sung by Sasaki Nozomu, on the Schwarz I image album [Weiß Kreuz]. The short little one-liners near the end are translated from the chorus.

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Ephemeral

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I.

The mayfly barely has a chance to live.  It spends around three years as a nymph, eating vast amounts of algae, molting many times as it grows, and avoiding frogs and fish.  After it molts for the last time, into a golden yellow adult, it has only a few hours before it dies.  Its scientific name is Ephemeroptera ephemeridaei.  Ephemeral.  Fleeting, living for a brief time before its amber wings stop their fluttering.

II.

I couldn’t sleep, which was why I was wandering outside.  Although I could see well enough, it was getting darker, as evening faded into dusk.  Heading into the woods behind my backyard in the dark wasn’t very smart, but I had a penlight and my house key in my back pocket so I should be able to find my way back.

Of course, I just have to have insomnia.  At least, something close enough to it.  It is rare that I get a good night’s sleep; instead of wasting the time, I’ve started going outside since I don’t have enough time to myself.  Perhaps I’ll be able to sleep when I get back.  That is, if I don’t fall asleep outside, such as the time I went to listen to the stream bubble its way through the forest.

This time I was going to a pond I discovered a few days ago.  There were various different types of life; frogs, dragonflies, crickets, mice, little fishies, even a pair of ducks.  Obviously there are algae, other plants, and various microbes too.  Maybe I could borrow a microscope from the bio labs…  Anyway, I was curious to see what it would look like in the dark, especially with the mist rolling in.  Should’ve brought a jacket and my camera.  At least I was wearing trousers.  Grasses, nettles, and insects aren’t too friendly towards bare skin.

III.

I must be dreaming.  The mist sure makes me think so.  Fireflies are blinking here and there, never in the same spot twice.  Grey-blue mist hangs low over the ground, creeping over the water, obscuring the distance.  Kneeling at the edge of the pond, I see molting insects…  mayfly nymphs?

A flash of gold.  Look, over there!  A group of mayflies!  Swooping through the air, yellow tails streaming behind.  A bird dives down and snatches one out of mid air.  Another gets snapped up by a frog.  Others continue their dance, streaks of amber and gold through the darkening sky, disappearing and reappearing through the mist.  Some have fallen to the ground, dying in mid-flight.

I stand transfixed for hours, gazing in wonder at the slight melancholic beauty of nature.

IV.

Mayfly, soon to vanish…

Ephemeral.  Lasting only for a brief, fleeting moment.  The chances that came my way were not many, but the few that I’ve managed to grasp have been for the better.  The ones that slipped away are looked back on with regret, but in this short life there is not much time for regret.

Mayfly, take me away…

Sometimes, when I look back and realize how many years I’ve been in school, it seems as if by the time I get out, I’ll only have a few years left at the most.  Spending all this time, cramming useless, pointless, and completely irrelevant knowledge into my head, while forgetting the important stuff…

Mayfly, don't be sad…

In my normal, dull existence, there are a few times where I’m really and truly happy, where the world in golden amber, and I can almost forget the problems plaguing the planet.  A few, rare fleeting moments.

Mayfly, ephemeral thing…

V. Ephemeral.  Those are the chances in life.  If you come across a wonderful chance, grasp it and never let go, or it will disappear as quickly as it came.  Sadness will come and go, happiness will come and go.  Human lives are long when compared to the mayfly, but just a mere blink of an eye in the time span of the universe.

~~~end

Any comments/suggestions would be appreciated. Your reactions are welcome as well. ^_^
-Kazuko