Marthra

I knock on the wooden door and the sound travels through the hallway and down the stairs.

Fellas, open up

I hear footsteps pad toward the door, and as it opens, he lets out a

wooaaaaa

Moth! Moth! Moth!

A moth came in! It’s gonna leap at my face!

He ducks around the corner and I’m more than a bit surprised at the reaction.

You know that moths are arguably most harmless of the insect kingdom, right?

Yeah, we know

Older brother chimes in.

But the issue is that it’s really likely to give us a jump scare

I mean, fair enough, but it’s still just kind of ‘there’

Yeah, we get it Papa

I briefly worry whether I am raising cowardly children, then pause to consider their point. And, true – walking into the bathroom and having a moth fly into your face, in the middle of the night, in the dark, is a bit of a scary prospect.

I take a breath, crack my knuckles (I do not actually crack my knuckles), and steel myself for a battle with Marthra.

I am Godzilla. Protector of the city.

Or at least this tiny room in a boutique hotel.

She’s perched on the bathroom wall way up above the sink, but we have to fluctuate between turning lights on to provoke her, and turning lights off to help her calm down.

Because she’s so high up I need something to reach her, and of course, a toilet brush (because why not) becomes my weapon of choice.

But I’m a lover, not a fighter, and in these moments do my best to cause no harm.

So, I trust to the brush, and wave it in her direction to encourage flight.

Lights on!

I shout to Rhino.

The room is lit, and Marthra is immediately all flutter and no fury.

Lights out!

She pauses on the wall, just dark enough that I can see her.

This goes on for a couple minutes in the bathroom until finally I’m able to shoo her into the main room. Elephant is unimpressed.

You should’ve kept her in the bathroom!

She perches on the wall, and I pass the toilet brush to Rhino.

If you’re not gonna help me catch her, at least put this in the bathroom – and wash your hands.

I pick up a ceramic cup from the bathroom and gently place it over our friend. She doesn’t seem to struggle, and I think she might be ready to accept some help.

The back and forth can’t be as much fun for her as it is for us (it is not fun for us).

Elephant brings a piece of paper. I slide it under the cup.

Marthra has been bested. Captured, and alive.

But captured, only for a moment.

I walk her outside, only after I make a joke about dumping her on Elephant’s pillow.

He is unimpressed. But chuckles.

I slide the paper from the lid, give it a shake, and send Marthra into the night sky.

She seems happy

The boys feel safe

And my paternal duties for the evening are complete. Protector against any mass invasion,

Godzilla, victorious again.