The cave
Based on a nightmare I had.
heavy cave walls
darkness pacing around me like a panther
trapped between two tiny chambers
each tunnel leads to the same dead end.
hope is a small bead of light in the rock
just big enough to see air, freedom,
my family.
they leave, unaware of my absence.
forced onto my belly
crushed by immovable stone
i realize the terrible truth of my situation
i will have to wait in this hole all night
i am so far from the path that
i may never be found.
the air was thick but now it’s smothering
i scream
one long cry for help
one expression of fear
when my lungs are spent
the black echo hooks its claws in my thin hope
shredding it to tatters.
the cave closes for the night.
one by one, the floodlights shut down.
I woke up with the pillow on my face, threw it off, and took the sweetest gasp of air I’ve ever tasted.
Fresh Hell 
That pillow has got a lot to answer for, I was feeling scared for you and I was really worried….. throw that pillow out !!
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Haha, it’s usually such a good soft gentle kind pillow though. I never suspected it had murder in its heart… I’m willing to give it a second chance, but I’m a bit more wary now.
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Sarah, I could write an essay about the gripping quality of your poem. I’m not even going to try because I’m so pressed for time today. Besides, I’d want payment in tasty home-baked goodies. I’m an incompetent cook, after all — I miss those things!
Any way. The last two lines. Dang girl! Those are so good, creative, that I’ll accept them instead of the baked goods!
Next, I was wrestling with describing a bad dream earlier today myself. So maybe you’ll be interested in this: I took a different approach. Instead of describing the contents of the dream, as you did, I focused on its effects on me. Didn’t mention the contents at all! totally different approach. Neither better or worse in my opinion, but different.
Your poem much more, but that’s all the time I have.
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You’re hilarious. You realize you just wrote an essay about not writing an essay about it? 😂
Oh thank God you’ll accept the poem in lieu of home baked goods, because I ate all of the ones I had planned to send you!
Yeah, that is interesting how differently each person approaches a story and what words they decide to use, and from which angle to approach it. I love the uniqueness of people’s artistic interpretations.
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Diversity, differences — frequently life’s tastiest spices.
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Damn pillow. Take THAT!
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Hahaha!
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What smother is this on thine countenance?
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Yes, I did have a smother weighing heavy on mine countenance. Haha! Not sure if that’s the pun you were going for? Or are we just being Shakespearean?
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