Catatonia

Calcified mind and crystalized bone,

stone skin and paralytics,

the eyes water and bubble as vision fades

behind a layer of film and a creeping inner monologue,

lips and pale flesh frozen on an inanimate face,

drool pooling in the mouth,

the body swaying like a tower in the wind

desperate to fall

but held together by vines, friction, and self-preservation

as the muscles fossilize and atrophy

before they can crumble away.

Electricity bolts down the arm

and out the fingertips

but the motors are rusted;

warped pulleys and shredded threads

hang from the rafters while rope piles at the floor,

but a single furnace sputters to life

ignited by a dying ember one breath away

from a roaring flame,

metal creaks and groans as the engine breathes;

gears pushing gears pushing gears pushing gears

and like Sisyphus pushing his boulder

a single finger twists and bends toward the palm,

petrified skin sheds chips and scales

as a second finger follows, then a third;

a clenched fist shakes over a pile of dust and shale,

rust and nails restrict me

but I still keep moving.