Insomnia

'Ah Sleep' my tired body coos to the fidgety brain, When the face of the clock says eight and twain, The cajoling is a waste, it has the temerity to feign, 'Still at work', it prides and my body resigns in vain. Hours go by and the cells, they twitch in pain, At the ruthless obstinacy, and the organs, they complain, 'Why can’t he switch off, it’s well past rest time', A war cry gathers. The body; it tries hard to contain. The call to Morpheus, a lament so humane, Doesn’t go unheeded, as he descends with calm disdain, With his plush cargo of an endless dream train, To put an end to the vagaries of the brain. A collateral victim in this battle for supremacy, Innocent I lost, beg for their clemency, Morpheus and Mind don’t afford me any sympathy, As I churn up the bed in helpless agony. Flitting and rolling between sleep and dream, Battered by insomnia, as it reigns supreme, My eyes are heavy and my soul, it screams, As I wait impatiently for dawn to begin. My mush of a memory pillow and pajama satin, Together they lovingly caress my hair and skin, But even the lux of these earthly elements, Fail to bring a cheer to my sullen sentiments. Minus tender sleep, my head begins to spin, Night in, night out, a fight that I can’t win, And my liquid frame held hostage by the brain, Walks a twisted path under the tumult and the strain. In the dark hollows of my turbulent mind, I see me drop the memories of my past behind, Will I survive another endless night? As I wait at the entrance to the portal of light. Finally, it has come down to spirit and pills, The unavoidable root of all my ills, But under its influence I do sleep well, Until the time machine pounds me with its bell.