I am holding a monster in my hands
Round and furry, mostly head
Like a Furby
But evil, like a gremlin
Yellow eyes, snarling teeth
Rabid

Everyone is shouting
For me to get rid of it
I run out of the house
Towards the woods
I cast it away
Into the outer darkness
Yellow bugs seem to tumble
Out from its bottom
As if it were made of cockroaches

Everyone congratulates me
We have ejected the evil from among us
But then we realize
It is still out there
Others are still out there
This area is no longer safe
Perhaps it never was

We ought
To leave
Our home
Right?

But what
If I was wrong?

Rewind

I place the creature
None too gently
Inside a container
Glass, very thick
Or a metal dog crate

It snarls and rages
Perhaps it is hungry
So be it
Maybe it needs to starve
To become weak enough to manage

I wait
I watch
It glares
It shrinks
It’s anger
Turns to sadness
Perhaps even fear
Or perhaps the fear
Was there all along

I decide it is time to feed it
I suspect it eats raw meat
That seems a bad idea
I try fruit instead

It gobbles the fruit eagerly
Then whines for more
Pleading, not demanding.
I feed it through a small hole
Eventually it is full
And sleeps
Peacefully

There are still dirt and bugs
All over it
The next day, I dump it
Into a giant bathtub
With sloping sides
It can’t escape

It can’t swim
But doesn’t drown
It floats
Fortunately
The bugs and vermin don’t

I dump more water on it
Then pick it up with a towel
I have been wearing
Thick canvas gloves

It screams and fights
But more like a toddler
Expressing emotion
Than like a monster
Trying to kill me

My wife has cleaned its Container
I place it inside
Still covered by the towel

It instantly calms down
It spreads out the towel
Making it a Nest
Instead of a Prison

It looks up expectantly
I bring it fruit
It eats from my hand

I take off my gloves
He lets me scratch him
Between the ears

Which seems
Perfectly natural
This is now his home
This has always been
His home
Our home
Right?

Getting in touch
With my abjected emotion
Of disgust
#I-Feel-Tower