TWO BEETLES (poem 84)

by Vivian Chinelli

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"Mrs. Chinelli!" cried one of my students.

"There are two beetles in our room!"

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"Let's just kill them," said another.

"Let's squash them with our broom."

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"Please, NO!  They both deserve to live,"

a little girl spoke up.

With compassion and respect for life,

she slid them into a cup.

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She took them to the garden and

let them go their way.

It was clear to me,

because of her empathy,

that she might be ...

a vegan activist one day.

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