the lesson of the moth


i was talking to a moth the other evening.
he was trying to break into an electric
light bulb and fry himself on the wire.

"why do you fellows pull this stunt?" i asked him.
"because it is a conventional thing for moths?
or why, if that had been an uncovered candle,
instead of an electric light bulb,
you would now be a small, unsightly cinder.
have you no sense?"

"plenty of it," he answered, "but at times we get
tired of using it. We get bored with the routine
and crave beauty and excitement.
fire is beautiful and we know that if we get too close,
it will kill us, but what does it matter?
it is better to be happy for a moment and be
burned up with beauty than to live a long time
and be bored all the while. so we wad up all our
life into one little roll, and then we shoot the roll.
that's what life is for.
it is better to be part of beauty for one instant
and then cease to exist,
than to exist forever and never be a part of beauty.
our attitude toward life is
come easy, go easy.
we're like human beings used to be before they became
too civilized to enjoy themselves."

and before i could argue him out of his philosophy,
he went and immolated himself on a patented cigar lighter.

i do not agree with him.

myself, i would rather have half the happiness
and twice the longevity.
but at the same time,
i wished there was something I wanted
as badly as he wanted to fry himself.

                                archy  (Don Marquis)