Water boatman

[Eric Gofreed]

The Bug Who Wouldn't Shut Up
—a fable of sound, silence, and situational decency—

There once was a water boatman named Clive who believed in the power of passion and percussion.
He didn’t own a lute. He didn’t need a drum.
Clive had a love song in his loins and a beat in his belly.

Every night, he floated beneath the reeds, rubbing his tiny, heroic manhood against his abdomen like a deranged violinist, serenading potential partners with the enthusiasm of an aquatic Elvis in heat.

Unfortunately, Clive was scooped up mid-ballad by a human naturalist who mistook his mating pool for a swimming pool.
One moment, he was whispering sweet, obscene nothings to the universe.
Next, he was swishing around in a Chardonnay glass under a macro lens.

The human stared at him. Clive stared back.
Nobody said anything. Clive didn’t sing. The wine glass didn’t echo. The magic was gone.
He never rubbed again—not because he lost hope, but because no one wants to perform in a goblet with an audience that doesn’t even buy you dinner first.

The human later remarked, “I didn’t hear him scream, but then again, I never rubbed his genitals.”

​

Moral: Some concerts aren’t meant for land. And some talents need a proper stage, not stemware


Couplet:
His symphony came from down below,
A bug who played his Piccolo.

 

[AlanLichty]

I was trying to figure out how you got this shot until I read your prose more carefully. Nice improvisation to get the shot and a neat macro of this dude. I trust you dropped him off in a water body where he could resume his efforts to be an aquatic Elvis in heat?

 

[Eric Gofreed]

I was trying to figure out how you got this shot until I read your prose more carefully. Nice improvisation to get the shot and a neat macro of this dude. I trust you dropped him off in a water body where he could resume his efforts to be an aquatic Elvis in heat?

Thanks, Alan! Yes, I let him go—back into the nearest patch of reeds with a quick apology and a promise never to put a love-sick insect in stemware again. Hopefully, he's out there right now, rubbing out sonatas and reclaiming his title as the aquatic Elvis in heat. I figured he deserved at least an encore

 

[JimFox]

Thank you for not rubbing his genitals, we are trying to cut down on NSFW photos.

Very cool shot Eric and love the prose.

 

[Trent Watts]

Just saw this Eric. Fantastic all round.

 

[Jameel Hyder]

Nice imaging Eric