Member-only story
That Fly is Going to Cause an Accident
A Poem
That Fly is Going to Cause an Accident
It’s mid-June,
it’s summer,
and it’s hot.
She’s just finished her shift
at work, logging off the computer
sitting on the kitchen table
where her papers are spread
because that’s the room with
the most space, and she has to
run off to her service work
at a neighboring county jail,
so she quickly gathers her
phone, keys, wallet, and what-
nots — including a cold drink
for the drive. It takes a bit to
get settled in the car, but finally
she’s ready to head out.
Just as she turns on to the highway,
she feels a tickle on her leg…
and then it moves to her other leg,
and slowly creeps upward.
She has let a fly into the car
with her. She does not need this.
That thing is going to bother her
the whole way, crawling on her,
flying in her face, bumping into
the windshield, getting into her
drink, trying to get out or land
on her. That fly is going to cause
an accident, because she will start
waving her arms and stomping
and flitting her fingers at it.
Six legs and two wings and
that buzzing. She spies the fly
crawling up the passenger side
window — too far away — and
almost weaves into an oncoming
car. Distracted, she tries to keep
track of its disjointed, erratic path.
When it lands on the windshield,
it interferes with her vision.
Teases her fingers on the steering
wheel; she whisks it…
