o' turtle in your tank
why do you cry?
belly-ache or heartache;
which is it this time, turtle?

o' slow creature
idle too long
it's time to move on
moss collects upon your back

inimitable armour
to mundane pebble
you transform
in your tank

tell me what ails you
young reptile
do you long for the taste
of sweet algae in a pond?

or has it been too long?
have you forgotten
what it’s like
to be a turtle?

o' solitary being
have you given up?
the glass has bound you
these twenty-odd years

have you grown frightened
of what awaits outside?
you retreat at the sight
of the earliest light

o' forlorn prisoner
hold your breath a while longer
for freedom is bestowed
upon the patient