Silverfish
Silverfish whisper between the pages
Pheesh pheesh sibilance
Digested memories of love and flowers pressed
The silver twists through crumbling
Time, the intoxication of printer’s ink
And the aroma of yellowing parchment overlaid with sweat
A scent that sleeps between the covers waiting for a fish to net
Silverfish threshing between the lines
Lost in the memories of fading parchment
A presence somewhere the story of a fish
Dreaming of sea water
Here the earth tang of shelves
And the warmth of punctuation
Those terrorists riddling the foundations of society
And distorting the written word with their unseen presence
Until the fabric of things crumble without warning
On an unexpected evening
Taking no hostages
Unsparing of the old and beloved
Leaving the dust of memories to be mourned