ARTIST STATEMENT
Three people came to mind when writing this poem. First, my mother, who always armed herself with the mosquito racket as soon as she saw or heard a mosquito buzzing nearby. Mom, who would give us approving nods along with an excited ‘Yes!’ whenever we killed a mosquito, before reminding us to clean our hands afterwards.
The second person to come to mind is this little girl I remember from a Miniso outlet. Out of all the toys, accessories and snacks in that store, she wanted to bring home a mosquito racket. The excitement and joy she had over her find was just what I needed to finish this poem.
And lastly, this poem is for people who are hesitant to write their silly ideas. Poetry can come from anything, so go give some inanimate objects praise! I like to believe every family has a household object that completes their home. A must-have item that brings happiness for certain reasons. Their very own Unsung Hero.
PRAISE
I remember reading this one in the Facebook group, and it was one of my favorites of the month. It has all the qualities of a nice persona poem and is extremely relatable! As we humans seem to always seek villains or scapegoats, I think Fechia is on to something by focusing our collective angst and ambiguous ire, and then projecting them onto mosquitoes instead of other humans. I like this poem because these are exactly the types of poems that people will read to inform themselves about what our everyday lives are like.
—Lyrical Lunacy
“The Unsung Hero of the Indonesian Household” responds to The Persona prompt by Lyrical Lunacy.
The Unsung Hero of the Indonesian Household
I am different from my cousins, I am not used for sport.
Not badminton or ping pong, or Xiaomi forbid! Tennis.
I am used for the Hunt.
A proud member of the family, just as important as the dog guarding the house,
Or the cat disposing of the mice, I keep our house free of pests and disease.
Like the animals in the house, I require rest and time to recharge.
When I am at full strength, and hunting my prey,
You can hear me crackle with power.
During every hunt, the family erupts with cheers.
While they hear my roar and when they behold the singed corpses
Of my victims, the mosquitoes.
The lively hunts are my favorite.
When the mosquitoes drop in scourges,
My family rivals my cackling with their roars!
Fechia Ditama (she/her) is a wanderer with one purpose; to learn as much as she can before she reaches her destination. Born and raised in Indonesia, she started writing poetry at the age of seventeen. Fechia likes ice cream on rainy days and when she’s not writing or worrying about finishing her undergraduate, she can be found pursuing her amateur interests in music and Kendo. Her writing is mostly inspired by her memories, the people in her life and the stories she’s heard. You can find her on Instagram @stormiewriting.