Evolution by Neil Ellman

Evolution

How I evolved

is not how I hoped to be.

At the beginning

when i consisted of a single cell

I could have been an ichthyosaur

a whale, rhinoceroses, giraffe

or possibly a horse.

I could have become

a jellyfish, an antelope, a bee

almost anything

that breathed and ate and crapped.

Instead I became

a slithering, immoral creature

with an opposable thumb

prone to heart disease

diarrhea, dyspepsia and guilt—

In other words, a man.

Neil Ellman is a poet from New Jersey.  He has published numerous poems, more than 1,000 of which are ekphrastic and written in response to works of modern art, in print and online journals, anthologies and chapbooks throughout the world.  He has been nominated twice for the Pushcart Prize and twice for Best of the Net.