Thursday Afternoon on Friday Afternoon

July 23. 2009
2:50 pm

Just witnessed a cicada killer wasp attack a cicada.
The scene started in the tree, out of my view
I heard the cicada cry and looked up to see
two bugs descending towards my lawn.
My dog, Winston, heard and saw them too. He ran
towards the insects and thwarted the cicada
killer's kill. I tried to get Winston away for fear
of him being stung by the cicada killer.
Winston won the cicada and the cicada killer
was a good sport in defeat as it rose up to where
it came from.
I tried to get a look at it but Winston didn't trust
me and gulped it in his mouth and took off in evading
circles. He didn't stop until he swallowed it whole!

Now, I will share with you a story my mom used to tell me when I was younger and just retold to me when she called just after the exciting Cicada scene.

My mom, her sister June and Jimmy Fink went exploring in the woods near their neighborhood. They took the long driveway to The People's Church, a church that always creeped my mom and aunt out, because, you know, there are Pee-ple thehre! Waa-Ah-Ah Aaaah! The driveway went past the church and the three followed it into the woods. After a little while, they came upon a Mickey and Goofy style small round trailer in the clearing. One side of it was surrounded by a tall chain-linked fence. They walked around the fence and saw bones. Then they noticed dogs chained up in little houses. The dogs began to bark. The three were thinking, these poor dogs, when a man came out of the back door and yelled, "Hey! What are you kids doing here?" The three ran as fast as they could into the woods and collapsed in the autumn leaves. They layed low and watched as the man went inside the trailer and back out again. The three could only assume that he had grabbed a gun. My mom saw the man swivel his head wildly searching for the young trespassers. She became aware of the red shirt she was wearing and feared being seen. The man started walking towards the woods where the three hid. My mom, Aunt June and Jimmy Fink jumped up and ran all the way home.

Don't Kill This

My mom will kill me for telling you this, but don't kill a cicada killer wasp. I have always loved cicadas. It's really odd because I'm afraid of quite a few insects, but cicadas, an insect that most people find disgusting, are one of my favorite. We have a story in my family about my mom when she was a child and a cicada killer. My mom loved cicadas so much that she risked her life, so the story goes, by saving a cicada from instant death by plucking a cicada killer off it's back. This story has always led me to believe that cicadas should be saved at all cost. This summer my boyfriend and I bought our first house. We have found three cicada killer wasps in our screened in porch--each time my boyfriend has killed them. They are menacing looking creatures--a huge flying insect is one to be feared (unless it's a cicada, of course)! We weren't sure what kind of insect it was, so of course we Googled it. We found out how beneficial they are--it seems like all creatures are somewhat beneficial--right? The cicada killer wasp performs a biological control on cicadas, which can wreak havoc on deciduous trees. No matter how much I love cicadas, I love deciduous trees more. I don't know what we'll do next time this huge wasp decides to get caught up in our screen, but since our house is being unusually bombarded by cicadas--we will probably opt for a gentler approach. Gawd Speed!