34

Nightmare III

The dandelions are so high as an elephant’s eye and I dig and dig. Little worms I chop in twos, threes, fours. I have a big rock in my throat that is so heavy I am afraid I will sink through the ground so fast that I will be in the center of the earth with no way back up. I try to stand up. I try to be stronger than the rock but as I push myself up, push, push, this weight this rock is so big and it is stuck in my throat. I can’t swallow it or cough it up. I get to my feet but I know I will never be without this rock and it is caught in my throat so deep that I cannot scream as the worms crawl up my legs. I try to crush them but there are more and more. I must scream. I must. But I can’t.