the clock

went tick tock

It was a lonely summer night

and the young man had all the time in the world

and no desire for company.

You see, he had quit his job at the company

so he could enjoy his own

no plans

and he started to notice

small details

like the switch, that turned-on the porch light.

He didn’t know what that switch was for

until tonight (He Rented an Apartment).

With nothing to do, details came into focus

at a much slower pace

like the passage of time

and the clock

going tick tock.

It was nearly midnight

and the young man hadn’t talked to anyone in several days.

He thought

in bed, but

nothing profound—

just the pleasure of being alone.

Then it happened…

a stroke

His muscles seized-up

and he couldn’t move

He tried to call for help

but no sound came-out

He lay there for hours

until the morning light filled his room

His eyes were wide with terror

He was thirsty

There was a knock at his door

the missionaries…?

but their footsteps walked away

unable to save him.

The young man was in heaven

when he had control of his mind

but when that was stolen from him

at midnight

the miracle would be his dehydration death.

He tried to think around the barriers keeping him paralyzed.

Perhaps, if he used the left side of his brain, or the right

he might be able to move?

Perhaps the lower, emotional brain

or the reptilian stem?

He thought in as many different ways

as he could, but nothing helped him.

He was trapped.

Until the present,

many things had been wrapping him up

tightly

and his thoughts

untied their beautiful bows.

A spider crawled the length of his arm

and bit him

He didn’t know if it was poisonous or not

It began to spin a web, around him

Two months later

his manager found him

“He was always a quiet customer,” she said. “He never bothered anybody.”