DOMINION

“…and (they shall) have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the
fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”
Genesis 1:28

by Ben Rasnic

Truth is
there are no land titles or property deeds,
no pretentious hierarchy
in the natural world.

The robins will annually nest
their powder blue eggs
in manicured boxwoods
without need of my permission.

The honeybees will instinctively harass
when I venture too close,
their razor point stingers
on yellow alert.

The gray tree squirrels
will prance about in their mischievous ways,
prowling the perimeters, tampering
with the bird feeders & potted plants.

Legions of ants will return every Spring
to sneak through the crevices
and steal food from my cupboards
despite various granules and sprays.

The groundhogs will burrow their fat furry bodies
underneath my stockade fences and procreate
in bunkers beneath the yard shed,
finding humor in my traps and barricades;

And the deer will play chicken
with my Subaru in the pre-dawn commutes
because ultimately
I am no different

than they, just so much road kill
to be scraped into black plastic body bags;
and after all,
isn’t that the way it should be?