PERIWINKLE                            © 2018 Tom Greggs                                                     


I assemble my house
Pulling a tube sock filled with
Microwave-heated grain 
Snug up between my feet


My knees embrace
A small flat pillow and
To my chest I hug one
Long and feather-filled


My head is protected
By a slab of memory foam
Which can’t seem to 
Remember my name


All this I wrap in a blanket
And wrap again in darkness--
The room empty of light except
The clock’s numbers glowing red 


I am a periwinkle 
Known also as a caddisfly larva
Anchored to the bottom bed
Of a cold mountain creek


I’m encased in stones and bits
Of twig which protect against 
The fast moving dreams that
Constantly stream around me


And the lurking shadows 
—fish of prey—who may wait
Until I’m naked and at the toilet
To strike


In the morning in green water
Changed from blue and slack
I drift up toward the light
To shed my caddis case


And emerge onto land
To stretch wings and dry 
For one day until dusk
My metamorphosis complete