Like crenellated parapets, or teeth
in classic jack-o-lantern mouth, the gears
are alternating squares. They skirt a wreath
of metal round a rod that disappears
to drive an engine with efficiency.
Enmeshed to push and disengaged to change,
you clutch a tool and so too easily
you ratchet in and think it nothing strange.

But soft, I say, and disregard that clutch.
Now ease the gears to neutral; let them spin.
You don’t need any help to find a way
where higher gears can mesh. Without a touch
of dissonance, you’ll feel your will begin
to shift yourself without a clutch today.