Ladybirds

Ladybirds, by Matisse.
Japanese ideograms warn
of the poison within
ready to bleed and kill
from a leg-joint …
Yet friendly to humans:
devourers of pests,
seldom in that line
themselves; a rare few
will partake of pumpkin-
or potato-leaf. For children,
tiny guardians: her own body
a flaming house, the mother
flies to save her young …
In real life, ladybirds
resist tragedy, and those
unmated hibernate till
next season, in large numbers,
near plenty of food—
an image for the times,
and scenic, too: "places
chosen for clustering
are hilltops, or other
high points above
the surrounding country'.
All begin life in golden
eggs that explode into pupae
then eat and eat and eat,
blundering through green,
growing black filigree wings.