Sunday, August 19, 2012

A Poem: Creative Inspiration at 4 a.m.


The problem with staying up
later than any sane individual would
is not that I end up wasting the daylight hours
or yawning insistently all the next day.

No.  The problem is much bigger,
much more important than any of that.
The problem with greeting the dawn
before my head hits the pillow
is that there are no distractions.
Nothing but my thoughts
to keep me company
and occupy my time.

Not nice happy thoughts either
of laughs shared with loved ones
or accomplishments grand or small.
The darker it gets in the world outside my bedroom,
the darker the thoughts that flit around my head.

Thoughts of people who played with my heart
like it was a childhood toy.
Memories of lovers who left me alone in tears
and a bed far too big for one.
People who hurt me stand like ghosts in the room,
each wound they inflicted fresh as the day it was dealt. 


No longer content with the wrongs I’ve been dealt,
my thoughts start on my own imperfections.
The features on my body I wish I could change
if only I had the money and no one would judge me.
A list of failures big enough to fill a thousand tomes,
each seeming monstrous in size.

I finally concede to go to my warm bed
when I see my fears slithering toward me from the side.
But sometimes sleep doesn’t stop them
and they creep into my dreams instead. 

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