I particularly struggled with this when I was living in
England and studying for my Masters in English Literature. Because my classes
were so late in the morning or in early afternoon, I had no obligation to keep
a regular schedule. I set my alarm for eight anyway, though I found myself more
often than not getting up at nine and my actual work starting at ten. I’ve
gotten better, especially since I’ve graduated and since my new phone has a
snooze function with ten-minute intervals instead of five. But I’m not always
there.
The following poem is about that struggle. But I also like
to think that it’s more than that. I’m more than that. It’s dedicated to those
who don’t want to get up in the morning, those who’d rather sleep just a little
later than deal with the coming day. You’ve got this.
Waking
Up
I’ve stared at my calendar,
but… somehow…
I cannot seem to circle the day
not
when
today—tomorrow—is like a pool,
and
I
am lying on its edge.
Please don’t ask me to swim.
not
now—
not yet—just five more minutes,
and
I
promise I’ll get up—I’ll crawl
across
the shore and plunge into the
depths.
I can swim—stroke after stroke—
it’s
not
hours of swimming but just
one
arm after another.
I can do that. I can breathe.
Lay
on my back and feel
the rain patter down.
***
Let’s chat! What did you think of the poem? Are you a
morning person, or do you struggle with waking up?
Similar poems: Silent Words, Lost as a Leaf, and Pile of Words
I loved this - thank you.
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