I recently stumbled upon this story I wrote in Junior High School for an English assignment.  We had to write a letter from a different point of view.  For some reason I cannot remember I chose grasshoppers.  It’s a little rough, but interesting nonetheless.  I may rewrite it in the future when I have the time.

Life as a Grasshopper

Life as a grasshopper isn’t nearly as easy as humans may think.  We’re always being put down and stepped on, but there’s no reason for this.  Think about it, I mean, why do humans hate us so much?

I go about my business every day, doing my chores, cleaning my room, eating a few small insects for snacks, and then some human comes along with big feet and tramples my friends.  I have personally witnessed the demise of my mother and father, two of my brothers and my only sister.  Most of my friends have also been killed, or went off to the forest and never returned. 

Humans always think it is very traumatic to lose a friend or family member, but they kill us off with no regard whatsoever to our feelings.  Now I ask you, is this fair?  You see, us grasshoppers lead a fairly lonely life, due to the fact that we don’t have friends for a long time.  In this world you’ve got to look out for yourself, and get to know the human schedule for when they’re outside, so you can keep away from their big clodhoppers.

There are however, fates worse than death for us.  For example, my friend Joe once told me a horrible story about these children who would capture grasshoppers and lock them in jars with only a few pieces of grass in them.  Then the children would drill air holes in the top of the jar, as if that would keep them alive.  The captured grasshoppers would slowly starve to death, and then their bodies would be thrown out the back door or even fed to the family dog!  And the children would go out in search of more of us to torture.  After hearing this story I had nightmares for weeks.

Anyway, I’ve led a pretty long and prosperous life, due to the schedule I’ve worked out.  I only go outside at night, and I’m extra careful to stick to the places humans never go.  I have plenty of food to eat because some nearby humans were thoughtful enough to plant a garden.

This is my life.  I have made this transcript for future generations of grasshoppers so they know what life is like to a grasshopper such as me, who lived long ago.  I dearly hope life is better in the future.

Sincerely,

Quentin P. Grasshopper, esq.