Exposed and raw
Diaphanous flesh assaulted by sunlight
Not quite ready to face the day
But knowing that time is turning brown.

Hardening
To form a shell
Tough enough not to crack beneath gravity
And a spine that would a support
A sluggish form customarily supine.

Pupils painfully dilating
Accosted by light so bright,
A hole threatens to burn through
An underdeveloped retina.

Claws dig into the earth
To keep from being blown away by
Unrelenting winds.

And slowly lurch forward
To peak over the summit
And see what lies
On the other side.