Poetry competition 2009–10 – A woodlouse by Stani Miles

Winner (under 11 years category)

My hero is a woodlouse because
How swiftly they tuck and roll;
How brilliantly they dodge your rampaging feet;
How intelligently they scuttle about looking for moss.
Because how defensive they can be when dropping from great heights;
How kindly they offer food to fellow ants;
How fabulously they hide in shelter;
How bravely they face whole termite armies just for a single crumb.
Becasue how fantistically they jump just out of reach of human hands,
waiting to crush like a machine;
How marvellously they twist their way out of a waiting spiders web;
How magically…
How wonderfully…
…Just woodlice!