I want to sleep
Eyes made heavy by the afternoon sky
Gray clouds pregnant fat with snow or rain or both
Hanging so low they scrape the trees
Get caught on vines and utility wires
That droop further from their weight
I want to sleep
Sink into the weariness of the year’s end
Surrender stubborn wakefulness to winter’s sway
Not think of anything needful for an hour or so
Join her in a warm bed and rest
The beat of her heart gets ever louder.
Her breathing ever more labored.
I listen and I listen and I listen.
What I fear now is silence.
I will not sleep.
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