Once, ages ago, I was an amoeba,
A tiny thing, a protist of one cell.
I'd never known of physics or photons;
I'd never dreamt of heaven or hell.

Looking back, I was a machine,
Some organelles, some carbon chains,
Mindlessly evolving,
Evolving mindless gains.

Once, ages ago, I was a sponge,
A porifera filtering the sea.
I'd never known of chemistry;
I'd never dreamt of you or me.

Looking back, I was a machine,
Soaking up ocean, finding nutrition,
Flagellas and enzymes,
Not sentient cognition.

Once, ages ago, I was a fish,
A chordate of gills and fins.
I'd never known of poems or prose;
I'd never dreamt of mortal sins.

Looking back, I was a machine,
Only moving to stay alive.
I was the remainder, the only one left
When other fish couldn't survive.

Once, ages ago, I was a snake,
A reptile of fang-tipped maw.
I'd never known of systems or sums;
I'd never dreamt of sacred law.

Looking back, I was a machine,
A vessel for instincts and not for thought.
My only interest, outside myself
Became the prey I sought.

Once, ages ago, I was a mouse,
A mammal who stirred in nights.
I'd never known of galaxies;
I'd never dreamt of moral rights.

Looking back, I was a machine,
Keeping predators at bay.
Thought was a tool that helped me
To live another day.

Once, ages ago, I was a man.