Where Did The Fireflies Go ~ Kaiser Kelly

In my youth, I would spend summer nights capturing fireflies 

Now, I can find all but one 

Summers searing, storms rougher when they take hold 

In the breath of rain there is no flicker 

Darkness between the weeping blades; it was not like this before 

Tell me, where did the fireflies go? 

Youthful skin littered in pustules, bites from mosquitoes snout 

I marked them with my thumb nail digging  

Beneath irritation to brand an ‘x’ 

Itching desperately for any relief  

Now, my flesh is free of blemishes 

Catching beetles in made-up hotels, I showed them where to sleep 

Bodies rolling up into tiny spirals 

Popping up when I reeled back  

Crawling along with childhood play 

Now, I can’t even find their shells 

Now, summers are sticky, melting  

Flesh to simmering sidewalks 

Where are those pests of my youth 

Tell me, where did the bugs go?