Symbols of our darker selves

Or just admire its stripes from afar.
I’d love to see the pride of the lions
Or the eyes of a handsome cougar.
But who wants to admire houseflies
And other insects or pests?
A worm may not be an insect
But I’ll throw them in with the rest.

Lions and tigers can kill us
Yet we admire their strength
But who admires mosquitoes
As they sweat in their tropical tents?
And when we look for a simile
Or a symbol or metaphor,
If you want a symbol for cruelty and harm-
That’s what insects are for.

The smallness and the cunning
As they slip in right under your clothes,
And bite you on your most private parts.
Where, nowadays, no-one else goes!
That makes us fear and hate them
But they are just doing their job
That is what they are made for
By their creator, Lord God.

God wants them to remind you
You aren’t so invulnerable
So he may send a tiger to eat you.
Gnats  so  innumerable.
St.Francis made friends with the birds
And with the wild animals too.
But which Saint made friends with the insects
Which live in this great earthly Zoo?

Will you be the volunteer holy one
Who befriends the hornets and fleas?
Will you tolerate their sharp sniping
As you try to tempt down the bees?
Will you preach such honey filled sermons
That spiders and beetles will flock,
And none of these insects will sting us again,
When they are tamed by you eloquent talk?

You’ll be the Patron  of Envy,
The knife sticking into the heart.
You’ll be the Patron of Rage and of Malice.
I’ll be relieved when your new Mission starts