My heart weighed heavy,

a pressure like

the weight of the sky

against Atlas’s shoulders, 

pulling me down

behind my rib cage.

A crushing force—

I watched it

sink me beneath

the dirt and ashes

spreading around me.

I burned with such

intensity and heat

I thought that there would be

nothing left of me.

A spiritual calling

disguised as death,

I walked through

the fires of hell

until I clawed my way

out of the underworld.