I saw that old man, all covered in stone,
from the top of his head
and well into his shaggy beard –
petrified from years of regret and wondering
about what was there
and what might come next.
He’s stuck,
there in that tomb,
just close enough to the water to be taunted,
but never allowed to drink.
That must be how Prometheus felt after
the millionth day of his spleen being ripped from his body.
Was the spleen important back then?
Did Zeus know what it did?
Maybe he also had some insight into the function
of the appendix.
Maybe he is also punishing this god
for choosing Earth
and the mortals instead of the soap opera in heaven.
Zeus captured this old god’s sadness
perfectly,
and then encased him in stone
to relive it for all time.
I wonder if that guy’s wishing he could switch places
with Prometheus
and lose his spleen for a few millennia.
Pen in Motion 