Painted In Gold - 23. The Death Song

Tick, Tick, Tick, Tock
goes the second hand on the clock.
As I lay still on my lumpy, grey cot,
a heightened sense of hearing and sight
is all I have to keep me aware of what’s
going on around and inside me.

Tang, Tang, Tang, Ting
goes the guard’s night-
stick against the titanium
bars.
I gather my things
and I cradle them in my arms,
taking in my sense of touch
one last time

Click, Click, Click, Slide
goes the guard’s boots against
the off-white linoleum
floors. He marches
slowly towards me, humming
the death song.

Click, Click, Click, Slide
Click, Click, Click, Slide

Click

Click

Click

Slide

They come for me, humming
the death song.

Quivering lips and heavy breaths
make it hard to guess how far
he is from me.

Tick, Tick, Tick, Tock
Tick, Tick, Tick, Tock

Tick

Tick

Tick

Tock

Time is against my
biological clock, which has run
out of seconds to tick tock
away cuz, the time of my life is
up. It’s running away and I can’t
catch a break to just make this stop.

Tick

Tick

Tick

Tock