NARCOLEPSY

one too many mornings
my brain remains on standby
the computer has shut down
my emotions are fragile
my mood crabby cancerian
anger and annoyance come easily
tempers fray
anxiety attacks
frustration sets in
stress coils its body around me
constricting
suffocating
or is it drowning?
the demands of others seem onerous
i long to cross off my appointments
bin my to-do list
burn the contents of my in-tray
delete my email stockpile
personality ticks grate
i escape to the coffee shop
scribble down stream-of-consciousness thoughts
personal minutiae
self-centred ramblings
desperate therapy
i go to yoga class
there is a big chart on the wall of the sala
miniscule photographs of a model contorted into 908 poses
most of them look physically impossible
or like something out of the karma sutra
but my inability to understand the teacher's instructions
the stubborn inflexibility of my stiff body
simply adds to my chagrin
not even mind-body work can help this suffering narcoleptic
sometimes days such as this must be endured
in the knowledge that all things must pass