Guinea - Pig Poem by Sree lakshmi

In this grim cage I run,
Bleeding, panting, crying,
I sold my freedom,
For a life- a cruel life.

I look at the exercise wheel,
A distant hope lighting my face.
I know they’ll never let me free,
Still I run at the exercise wheel,
I can never run my way to freedom, but I try.

Scared, frightened, I live my life,
Regretting that I didn’t choose death over this.
A gloved hand enters the cage,
I crouch at one corner frightened.

But there is no escaping this cruelty,
The hand squeezes me, I cry out,
The hand retreats knowing I’m alive.
A syringe is taken,
Some dark thick miasma in it.
I hope it is poison.
It pricks…

A spray of blood onto the grimy walls,
I look at the pool of coagulated blood at the corner,
My blood…
I fall to the floor of the cage,
Which is caked with dried blood, puss and phlegm.

Exhausted I lay,
I cry out in agony,
Writhe in pain,
Squeal at this excruciating life.
A face comes at the cage,
His eyes glinting with sadistic happiness,
His mouth curled up in a pleasurable smirk,
“ Gentlemen, we just tested our new biological weapon.”
I heard him mutter.

An applause so loud it hurt my ears,
Each one taking a slice of pleasure from my pitiful squeal,
Many a mouth depicting a greedy smile.
I lay, hoping that death would be so kind as to visit me.

Soon they all went,
The gloved hand opened the cage door,
I didn’t go, go out to a world where I can’t enjoy the sun,
Where my memories would haunt me, wounds would never heal.
How can I be free? When millions of me suffer unspeakable cruelties.
I didn’t go…

Was it astonishment I saw in his face?
“ I gave you a chance out of pity, but you refused.
Now I’ve to eliminate this possible means of biological contamination.”
Said he, as he poured gasoline over the cage.
I saw gasoline mix with my blood & grime and stick to my body.
Me – bleeding from my mouth.
And I saw him light a match.
And he let it fall …