The Art of Tetman Callis

here is a rock
size of a small fist
a child’s fist

on the rock
size of a birthmark on a child’s hand
is a fossil

the fossil is of a sea creature
a shelled animal
it is exquisite
hold it up to your eye
you can peer into the small dark chambers of the fossil

time has been kind to the creature this once was
it looks pretty good for being two hundred million years old
give or take

i scratch these words on paper
seeking immortality

(Published in High Street: Lawyers, Guns & Money in a Stoner’s New Mexico (2012, Outpost 19); copyright 2023 by Tetman Callis.)