A Little Rescue

A tiny fluttering sound drew me down from my clothespin lookout toward the dusty balcony corner. Wedged upside down between two railing slats was a fat, shiny green beetle, frantically kicking its black legs in the air! It looked just like a mini mutant crawler struggling in a weird barrens trap. Slipping low against the cedar deck, I nudged my pale horned snout right underneath its smooth wing cover. Shifting my weight along my ribbed orange coils, I gave a steady heave. Pop! It rolled onto its feet, paused to twitch its antennae at my chin, and scuttled safely into the warm pot soil.