Eighth poem of the day. The prompt for the hour was to write a pantoum… I hate all the thoughts that keep me awake because my mind refuses to relax taking my body along for the ride long after I have closed my eyes Because my mind refuses to relax I toss and turn and worry [...]
Tag: anxiety
What happens when you get what you want? (a poem)
Inspired by a call for writing about ‘what pop culture did for you, to you, and with you in the 1990s’, I go back to 1992 (though the photo is from 1991)… Xanax® fogged me into an anxious limbo a state of wired sedation where clouds had edges and every outing threatened amputation The screaming [...]
While I wait (A poem)
Started while sitting in a coffee shop that was a bit too warm for comfort… The room is large, but the tables are small there’s barely enough space for two and it’s hot—almost too hot for waiting Yet here I am, waiting for you There’s barely enough space for two but I’m making do with [...]
The long slide from hope to rage (A poem)
This pantoum was inspired by the title of an article appearing in The Guardian: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/mar/02/the-guardian-view-on-super-tuesday-the-long-slide-from-hope-to-rage They say it’s a long slide from hope to rage some have been on the slide for a long, long time Some stand at the top, peering nervously over the edge hoping it’s not their turn this time Some have been on [...]
Dear Iris (A poem)
Today’s epistle, another terzanelle, is inspired by my choice to work on my tax return today… I swear, now you’re just toying with me getting my hopes up, and then WHAM! You know it doesn’t take much to make me dizzy… If the window’s closed, the door won’t slam It seems I can’t escape the [...]
One more (a poem)
The results of yesterday’s writing were largely unsatisfying. I wrote five poems, each one shorter than the last, and wasn’t terribly sure about any of them. So, I let them sit overnight. Revisiting them this morning, I am still largely unsatisfied with the results. The one I am posting is at least the most honest [...]
369 Days Later (a year in review)
Warning: This is kind of long (and mostly unedited)… On December 3rd last year, I had the second-worst panic attack of my life. I had just been for a swim, and was driving back home. Although I’d been experiencing some occasional anxiety since a frittata-induced heartburn in October (eggs are no bueno for Kevin), as [...]
Lifelong Learning
I have recently come to the conclusion that I have become a lifelong learner. It is often said that learning is a lifelong activity. I think that most of us don’t really look at it that way. We go to school while we grow up, then some of us go to college (then a few [...]
27 Reasons I Still Have Anxiety (a poem)
This was a tough one. The July 19th prompt in The Daily Poet: Day-By-Day Prompts For Your Writing Practice, by Kelli Russell Agodon & Martha Silano, is to "write your own list poem using 'because' as your refrain word." (Their main reference was Juan Felipe Herrera's '187 Reasons Mexicanos Can't Cross The Border' poem.) The tough part [...]
Today’s Insight: I Am Vigilant
One of those random thoughts entered my head a day or two ago: I am vigilant. I've been pondering that ever since. I am vigilant—and I think that's a problem. It's one thing to be aware. Awareness enables us to see things, to learn things, to understand things. In this way, awareness helps us to [...]
