Free Basal Ganglia by Matthew Revert

receptive ears, he will push Ingrid aside. If such overt action results in distress or anger, he will endure it. Anything can be endured. All one need do is wait. Emotions are short-lived creatures, quick to drop their essence like a cloud drops rain.
    In the Occipital Chamber he pulls away a section of luminescent moss, wrapping it gently in a cloth, which dulls and preserves its glow. A smaller section is pulled away which he eats, allowing his body to experience the mental and physical strength it provides. The moss sits comfortably inside, breaking down without complaint. In the Sylvian Fissure he washes. The water is weaker than before. Less inclined. It drips rather than flows. Like a tear one tries to prevent. He moves the pathetic wet around his body, feeling it evaporate beneath the heat of his hand. The occasional cough of grey water douses him, before the pathetic dripping continues. His skin only relinquishes its filth with persistence. Trapped grime bleeds from his body, washing away, dying in water traps.
     
    …
     
    Ingrid is compelled toward an action she is unable to reconcile. There is an addition to her son she longs to make. A conscious addition contrary to the principal of natural development she has tried to abide by. Within this compulsion is a sense her son is not yet complete. As though whatever existence it possesses is a step away from true existence. Time is spent focusing on this addition. Rationalizing it. Building reconciliation between what she wants and what she deems right. Rationalization works to marry one extreme with the other, shaving off edges. Pushing toward the middle. Finding common ground where none has reason to exist. With commitment, anything can be correct.
    Ingrid is able to find the reconciliation she desires via Rollo. When she has completed the final addition, Rollo will be able to interact with his son. This is a commitment she makes with discretion, trying to mask the commitment from her deeper self who understands the lie. The commitment rests on a precise course of action Rollo, although not aware of it, must abide by. Her commitment allows for its own retraction should Rollo deviate from the highly specific path she has built for him to follow. It is a path so complex not even Ingrid comprehends it. One she hopes Rollo will fail to follow. The commitment is designed to rationalize the baby’s addition, and in that aim, it is successful.
    Ingrid’s son is moved to the Frontal Chamber. Into light. He is placed on his back, staring up at folds in the ceiling, taking in nothing. Taking in every detail. A needle’s eye is introduced to red thread. The baby’s belly juts outward, waiting for the needle’s kiss. Ingrid’s hand swoops toward the belly. The needle slides easily inside the child, who continues his entranced stare. Sewing’s dance begins with caution. An unfamiliar pattern is expected. Ingrid’s hand will guide the pattern into knowing. Stitching finds rhythm. Rhythm grants pace. A shape is forming on the child’s new belly.
     
    A red circle.
     
    The circle concludes. Ingrid places the needle within its parameter and begins the rhythm once more. A slight change. The circle is smaller. The larger circle must accommodate it, but only just. The new circle must allow for a smaller circle to sit within it.
     
    A red circle within a red circle.
     
    Another circle begins to form within the second, becoming a third. Ingrid maintains a focus beyond her. A careful hand amplifies with greater care. Precision becomes more important and more difficult to achieve as the circles decrease in size.
     
    A red circle within a red circle within a red circle.
     
    Ingrid continues her task, attaching increasing importance to each new circle. The smaller the circle, the longer it takes, as the intricacy and care required intensify. The baby remains still, ever patient. Allowing the addition to its body. Understanding, via Ingrid’s understanding, this needs to happen.