Petrifying

Imagine that!
So terrified - you’re solidified!
But what if…
you were only a little bit scared
and just your nose turned to rock.
Or your right ear. Or your bottom.

Miss – he can’t climb the rope, his bum’s obsidian!
Miss - he can’t do the test, his head’s all granite!
Miss – she can’t take the penalty, her feet are flinty.

Imagine slowly turning into
a mass of metamorphic,
a stack of sedimentary,
an ingot of igneous FEAR.

What if …
the only way to stop it was to say the words…
I’m scared about…
Then slowly
your tonsils would wobble
or your earlobes would flop
and your skin would warm.

But what if …
it was too late!
Imagine being so terrified that all of you solidified at once!
A statue!

Or imagine walking into a classroom
and everyone had turned to stone -
and they were all staring at the same thing!
Would you look …
or would you run?

Before it was too late.