walking along a twisted path
i stumbled on a miniscule rock
thrown suddenly to the curb
with my head crushed against cement,

and as blood poured and pooled,
the day turned black,
and consciousness turned inside out,
and i began to dream i was born
anew in another life,

a man then of
90 years,
skin color changed
and with a name unfamiliar,

i sat and listened
to strangers' conversations
wondering who was calling,
and why my arms were frozen,

and then i saw myself
as a child of four,
walking across the street
with my mother's hand in mine,

and for ten seconds,
i wanted to scream,
to yell in recognition
of my younger self,

trapped in a body not my own,
but somehow with all its memories,
and for a brief second,
i was again paralyzed,
watching an image
turn and stare into my eyes,
then return to a gentle tug,
down a path led by a young woman.

 
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