A Dream of Waking

I dreamt of ships one winter night In heavy seas and high alarm We'd missed a meeting, lost our clothes could hardly run, had swum too far And then the mast came crashing down, All cast adrift, or lost somehow When suddenly the boy cried out "Are we allowed to wake up now?" He said it time and time again Till I joined in with all my heart And vowed I would do all I could to pry my heavy lids apart And when I did I saw the clock With arms dropped down not far apart With breath allowed, I lay there still While beating brain met thinking heart I wanted to go find the boy to see his shape, to check his breath to know he'd made it back this far to touch his hand, untouched... And later when the morning sun brought headlines, heartbreak, furrowed brow, I heard the small voice once again; Are we allowed to wake up now?