RED LOLLIPOP

The bright red lollipop
Fell from the toddler’s saliva-filled mouth
Onto the thick grass.
The whiner ran to Mommy,
And left the juicy candy alone.
Seconds called an army of ants
To the sweet smell of sugar.
Their tiny feet slushing in the goo
Of the freshly-licked, shimmering cherry ball,
Sucking the goodness they desired.
Until their faces and bodies became sticky and red.

But as glue hardens,
So did the slime of the lollipop in the cool spring breeze,
And the ants had not thought ahead,
Being blinded by the outer cover of this candy coated Satan.
Now feet no longer slushed,
But stuck like little dark hairs seen under thin skin,
Statuesque ants entrapped in hard, red glass.
And the ones that managed to get away,
Left feet and friends behind
To rot with the deadly red candy lollipop.