You greeted me this morning slyly
Your red-golden shell on your soggy black legs.
Your shadow haunts me,
I think I spy you everywhere.
You are with me when I put on my shoes—
My heart halts at dark corners.
I feel you tickle my face and my toes at night,
Sometimes you even visit me in dreams.
What’s it like humping that enormous weight
Balanced precariously on those spindly legs?
You feign boldness,
But I know you are a coward.
And I wonder if it’s you Gregor,
And if you’re sad it’s so hard for you to die?