A repeat paralysis nonpareil, 

out of which one fails

to make heads nor tails; 

and each time the tide

claims another fragment, 

what is it, really, that remains?

 

For, though it is true, 

the Ship of Theseus

has yet to capsize, 

each time the healing

swoops in anew, 

to anaesthetize the wound, 

the timber may be fresh,

but does the backbone

begin to belong

to someone else?