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when he was seven
the biggest miracle
in the world were
the silkworm larva
that he brought home
from school to care for—
and the fact that they
ate mulberry leaves
and that there were
mulberry trees
along the street
on his way home
and that mulberry fruits
were called toots
and were part of the culture
he was clinging to
as he learned the meaning
of the words wonder
and assimilation.  

the eggs had taken fourteen days
to hatch into larvae
and they had been eating
continuously since:
masticating machines
pulsating like veins
freed from a body.

they were covered
with tiny black hairs,
and when their heads turned darker,
they began to molt.
emerging
white
naked
with little horns
on their backs.

he was too young
to differentiate
science from fiction   
magic from reality.
earlier in the year
his teacher
had taught him a new language-
imagine more than one way to name
the moon,
songs,
friends,
acceptance,
home.

their bodies had become
slightly yellow like butter
and the skin had become tighter.
the larvae had entered
the pupal phase and enclosed themselves
in a cocoon made of raw silk
produced by their salivary glands.

as an only child in solitude
he would listen
for what was happening inside,
wondering if the loneliness he felt
was everywhere.

the final molt from
larva to pupa would take
take place within the cocoons,
which provided a vital layer
of protection during the vulnerable,
almost motionless pupal state.

he gently pushed the edges
wondering what would
emerge—
how had (t)he(y) changed

soon they would release
proteolytic enzymes
to make a hole in the cocoon
so they could escape as moths.

the moths would not be capable
of functional flight,
they would emerge with the ability
to lift off and stay airborne.
they fluttered about the box
and on his fingertips
like blind aliens
but sustained flight
would not be achieved
because their bodies
would be too big and heavy
for their small wings.

he doesn’t remember
what happened to the moths
after that.

lessons were learned
pictures where drawn
and the miracles were
probably thrown into the trash.