A Nightmare

The other night I dreamed of spiraling downward, But the earth delayed rising up to receive me. I watched my unending fall into masses of despair Falling rapidly, I found that I could not flee; I could only hope that “better angels” would prevail, That I would be spared this ultimate catastrophe. The sudden dashing of my bones and blood Into the seething cauldron of anger at the barricades, I became embedded with the riff-raff insurrectionists [For those two hours of storming the palisades] Who were not impetuous youths or young idealists, But malcontents gathered from all types and trades. When I awakened I found myself suspended in limbo Not discerning where I had been or what it could mean, Until I recognized the statue of Lady Liberty atop The shining golden dome that rises from the green; Realizing how awfully close, like democracy, I had come To disappearing into the disastrous and never again seen. Revised and Edited March 31, 2021 Bookshop Contest sponsored by Kai Michael Neumann September 23, 2022 Submitted to: "One from the Dark Side" Poetry Contest Sponsored by: John Lawless