Published September 1st, 2023
by Leandra Ryan
(Prospect, South Australia, Australia)
My biological requirement of sleep is impervious to my desire for a still body and
silent mind.
My eyes are open, now begins the eternal wait for the sound of my alarm.
My first few steps down the hallway are met with the feeling of perpetual
weightlessness.
My coffee is bland.
My vision stays as clear as the neighbour's house through the smoke from my first
cigarette.
The atmospheric noise is deafening.
Each morning feels desolate and the nights are painfully numb.
Every second feels a million times longer than the last.
Yesterday feels just like today.
Tomorrow seems unattainable.
My phobias are no longer the worst of my fears.
My perception of reality has become dismal and bleak.
My new normal is the presence of darkness in the middle of the day.
Biography
Leandra Ryan: From the soul of a wife dealing with her husband's sudden and unexpected incarceration.
This poem is included in Poetry World #7, published in the Wax Poetry and Art Library.
Previously published in Australia Poetry Magazine:
Hyper-vigilant
by Shannon Morrissey
Australia Poetry Magazine is part of the Wax Poetry and Art Network.
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