VIII. אַרְבֶּה
Exodus 10: 12-17
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, that they may come upon the land of Egypt, and eat every herb of the land—all that the hail has left.” So Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an east wind on the land all that day and all that night. When it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts. And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt and rested on all the territory of Egypt. They were very severe; previously there had been no such locusts as they, nor shall there be such after them. For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every herb of the land and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left. So there remained nothing green on the trees or on the plants of the field throughout all the land of Egypt.
Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste, and said, “I have sinned against the Lord your God and against you. Now therefore, please forgive my sin only this once, and entreat[a] the Lord your God, that He may take away from me this death only.”
Schistocerca gregaria
The Swarm
04.29.25
I don't know why they've kept me alive this long, but I'm losing my faith. They've eaten through the walls of my cage, they buzz in my ears with promises to savor me. They chant cruel reminders of my helplessness, but underneath I can hear the strain of someone who was once human crying out for the soul they used to be. Except there are two of them this time. One is a man. The other, a woman.
When I recognized the voices of two victims rolled into the amalgamation of locusts, I felt sick. The same ones that once soothed me with affection and bedtime stories, who insisted everything would always be okay, now dangling death over my head like a mobile above a child's crib.
My search has ended where it began. And there was nothing I could do after all.
I love you so much. And I'm so sorry.
