The Aardvark
If I could, I would
bypass eating ants,
chubby grubs and
termite bites.
When I dig their towers,
when I claw their hills,
I see skitter, scatter.
I hear shriek and shrill.
But my gut churns empty.
Time to lick. They stick.
I swallow.
Hate the scratch and tickle
as they trickle
down my throat.
Bug heads pop inside my belly.
I belch a sour rot.
Roll flat, nose to ground—groan,
“If I could, I would…”
Lie there still,
lie there ‘til
I sniff a strange, new fresh.
Rise.
Shovel like a backhoe.
Excavate the earth.
Gather buried odd balls.
Wonder what they hold.
Crack. Split. Gasp.
Tip my tongue—
taste sweet,
taste tang,
taste jelly juicy fruit.
Slurp. Burp. Yum.
No more grubs, or termites,
no more eating ants.
I hang out with produce.
I hang out with plants.
bypass eating ants,
chubby grubs and
termite bites.
When I dig their towers,
when I claw their hills,
I see skitter, scatter.
I hear shriek and shrill.
But my gut churns empty.
Time to lick. They stick.
I swallow.
Hate the scratch and tickle
as they trickle
down my throat.
Bug heads pop inside my belly.
I belch a sour rot.
Roll flat, nose to ground—groan,
“If I could, I would…”
Lie there still,
lie there ‘til
I sniff a strange, new fresh.
Rise.
Shovel like a backhoe.
Excavate the earth.
Gather buried odd balls.
Wonder what they hold.
Crack. Split. Gasp.
Tip my tongue—
taste sweet,
taste tang,
taste jelly juicy fruit.
Slurp. Burp. Yum.
No more grubs, or termites,
no more eating ants.
I hang out with produce.
I hang out with plants.
FACT:
Aardvarks and the plant Cucumis Humifructus have a symbiotic relationship. This “cucumber, melon/ pumpkin” is the only vegetation eaten by aardvarks. The plant depends upon the aardvark to disperse its seeds, because it grows underground like a peanut.
This poem is copyright (©) Diane Lee Sammet 2025

About the Writer
Diane Lee Sammet
Diane Lee Sammet was a finalist in the Royal Palm Literary Awards (2024), and she has been accepted for the 2025 Big Sur Children’s Writing Workshop. Diane was the first-place winner of the Writers Helping Writers Fight Club Story contest (2022) and has been published in Academy of the Heart and Mind, AppleSeeds Magazine, Loch Raven Review, Perceptions Magazine, and The Phoenix. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, she holds two master’s degrees from Columbia University and the University of Hartford. You can learn more at dianeleesammet.com.