Captivity
There was a lion
Ate with a fork
Tranquilized for too long
One day
Took that fork
Put it upon the needle
Shooed it away
Stood up
Walked outside
Felt the sunlight
The warm breeze
Calmly
Peacefully
Walked to the gate
Picked the lock with the fork
Gently set the lock
On the ground
The gate creaked
Gloriously the lion, carrying the fork, exited the compound
There were tall trees
Rivers
Bunnies, flowers
The colors were almost too much
The deep breathing
The clarity
Across the way
A shining light
Curiosity
A broken mirror
The lion carefully picked up a large serrated piece
Stared
For so long
The moon rose
Eventually
The sound of the stream
Helped the lion think
And in the morning
The lion missed the prison
The safety of the chains
The fullness of the grey
Life
Started to walk back
The gate was open
Stepped inside
Stood
Turned around towards the overwhelming colors
Then back again to the grey
Back again to the colors
There were no sounds of birds
Flying above
Where had everyone gone
Upon the wall
Noticed for the first time
Words
Took the fork and slowly tapped each word
You
Are
Free
To
Leave
Anytime
The lion dropped the fork and looked out the gate, towards the overwhelming colors
Heavy paws planted
Couldn’t move
The moon rose
And the lion
Sat in that spot
Had trouble sleeping
An attack of thoughts
Anxiety
Society
Wake up
Hey
Lion
The lion opened its eyes
Looking for a voice
Couldn’t find it
Stood up
Walked around a bit
In the starkness
How can someone
The voice spoke
Atop the wall, the raccoon sat, clearly now in the lion’s vision
How can someone
So powerful
So smart
So brave
Leave an open door
Free as the wind
But return to captivity
Again
The lion, taken aback, gave the raccoon a scouring look
Agitatedly paced back and forth
You don’t understand
You’re a raccoon
They sat with that
A moment
Until
The raccoon
Hurled a lychee at the lion’s shoulder
Instantly creating the loudest lifetime roar
From the deepest anger of the lion’s conflicted soul
The sound waves sent the raccoon flying over the wall
And the sky turned electric blue
The lion sprang to the top of the wall
And looked to the sky
Roared again
The earth listened
The stars aligned
And the lion
Ran past the raccoon
