the creature

The creature lay low for years down in the pit of my belly – just below my rib cage and two inches from the dermal surface. It spent most of its time, if not all of its time, plotting escape. The creature had two main routes to choose from and only one objective to dwell in: freedom from the prison into which it had been born. At times, I was aware of it – thought its thoughts, plotted its plots, even felt as imprisoned as it felt (and as hopeful for the space beyond that prison). On some days, it would be set on crawling up my throat and (after tricking me into screaming at the top of my lungs) out of my gaping mouth. It would have been no great trick. Feeling something crawling out of the stomach would make anyone scream. On other days, the creature would decidedly settle on the southern route. This meant wallowing in some filth, but the route was more promising in other ways – it was Nature’s own and, therefore, less likely to resist the creature’s escape. You may be happy to hear that it did crawl out one day, and I did not resist its going. But, having attained the freedom of an unencumbered space, the creature started shaking violently. The sky was too big, the people too many, the streets too well traveled. I took pity on the poor thing and let it crawl back in the way it had left. But, it was never the same after that. Its bustling and planning and wanting ceased. And then, so did mine.