Untitled #74 (wakefulness)

Weary words on a dark page

Eyes made blurry from tearful confusion

Lead lines rough-hewn into words, into stanzas

Struggling moon beneath an atmospheric haze

Restless,

Awake,

Pacing

Soft carpet crumples beneath my feet

Crickets’ relentless song

Refrigerator’s endless humming

Eyes peer through glass panes

All but the leaves touched by a hinted breeze are hushed into a motionless mood

Here, the suburbs- sounds of cars passing – one, two, three

A strange whistling sound of tires thrumming across a concrete bridge

I hide the presence of my wakefulness

But how to break the curse of nightmares treading at my heels?

Shaking my head, I yearn for the residue of horror to be erased

Wishing my mind was made of sand, the result would resemble a shaken etch-a-sketch

Please saturate my brain with brighter emotion:

Dusty smell of horses’ winter coats,

Dancing through young wheat fields,

Savory taste of ripe strawberries,

Moonlit beaches, crests of waves, the glow of nighttime krill

Oh, noble Night, I beg of you to lull me to a splendid sleep

Yet your quietness has become deafening
Angrily I oppress myself asleep
Only to enter a repeated dreamscape

And again running from my haunting fears

Before waking up screaming

Caught,
trapped,
chained
by a new subconscious delusion