Prison Workout

The slit opens

I remember I’m here

pain dares me

just to feel

I greet the body

with a sort of prayer

then think of anything other than this

I go down to the floor hope I return

every breath

a calculated concern

calendar on the wall needles on the clock

up against nerve

muscles and blood

halfway done

something takes over

the self-talk promise

that things get better

hope is the last thing

that ever leaves

wrapped up in a swirl

of sweat and endorphins

Bugolgi Apparatus