This is my shy poem “Out of the Long Grass” written for all those who, like me, feel like hiding away at times, or sometimes all the time.

Out of the Long Grass

I'm a little shy / you know
 I like to hide in the long grass and
 
bury myself in a pile of lush leaves
 where other vermin and worms gather
 
they're quite friendly / you know
 the rats and worms
 
despised and exterminated
 they fear nothing and no one
 
wear nothing but a cheeky grin
 I envy and seek
 
to one day cut the long grass 
 wear a robe of lush leaves
 
How do you do it?
 dear Mr Rat
 
I ask in the thick
 of the soft grass
 
Oh, you mean the wry smile?
 it's easy / you know
 
just swallow your dread
 let the churn of your stomach
 
turn out the cheeky grin and
 before you know
 
you'll fly high above the clouds
 with vermin and worms
 
and when the night closes in
 you'll find your way back
 
to the soft grass and the lush leaves
 the wry smile edged into your face
 
so I gulp up my dread 
watch the cheeky grin light up my face

beyond the long grass and 
the pile of lush leaves