“the fear of cyborgs to believe in flesh” © 2022 by Maria Carvalho

A crack in my leg opened my world,
shattered it like thunder announces
the arrival of lightning
that illuminates the celestial sphere.

The tip of my finger followed
its ridged edge and my brain,
refusing to let go of my missing limb,
had the muscles in my thigh twitch.

Anticipating agony, my shaking hand
peeled away the corroding copper cast
holding my path in its rigid embrace.

Beneath the mint and coral galaxy
I believed to be my cosmos,
a gasp of relief escaped living cells
as they emerged from their coma.

By the time I was free,
my hand, the liberator, was cut up, red
mixing with the orange and the green
on the floor in a river of eternity.

I drew in it, covered my fingers in it,
imagined my arm encased
in this universe I created of my own.