Overslept

I overslept twice this week, one was on a Saturday and was of little consequence, the other made me late for work. I was baffled by this second time because I had all my alarms set correctly, and somehow I slept through it all regardless. It gave me an idea for a poem about sleeping through something else pretty important. If the response to this poem is strong, I've got three or four I never typed up that I might look into posting as well.

“Overslept”

I wound my way through a dark tunnel,

an endless procession of sleep

sleep that brought histories to life

things made and unmade, remember and forget

all gone once I awoke

stamped out by fingers rubbing eyelids,

by daylight

And all was truly washed away,

Lost in my dreaming

I slept the world away, waking to white sand and quiet

My bed lay by the sea

lost and out of place,

while I stood and rubbed my eyes again

Faint music filled the air,

Golden sounds,

I looked for the one that slept beside me,

and the bed was empty

But I felt a hand on my shoulders and knew I wasn’t alone

The day I slept through the end of the world