Time flows by relatively quickly here
like a vacuum, a space with neither light nor sound
and you blink and suddenly
-lights up, curtains down-
the time spent here is already coming to a close.
And you walk, one day on cement, the next on leaves that crackle like fire
and beneath your feet, the pavement’s slick with ice
and you look up from the music blaring in your ears
and you smile and wave at someone you knew.
They remember your name, and you remember them too.
And the chapters fly by and the words and the charts and diagrams
and knowledge, so many lines of knowledge crammed in so little time
and, occasionally, some tidbit or other interests you
and sometimes, it’s hard to decipher your purpose
and the outside world bleeds into the inner
and you get sick or cold with fever, but still…
-lights up, curtains down-
then you find yourself centerstage, other times
the villain, other times
the sidekick
each a player trying to find their place on the stage, but the page
doesn’t always match up to the script’s idea of the lines
that are crammed into your mind in only ten weeks
just breathe.
it’s easy to forget, as the curtain call sounds…
just breathe
and the world is a hum of energy and schedules and clock-in-and-clock-out
just breathe
when it’s all overwhelming, it’s easy to forget…
to breathe.
to eat.
to sleep.
to live at all.
But as the end rolls around and the fire of autumn dulls to the ice
and the rain beats on
and the world disappears
under the blanket of snow
your heart warms because, on the inside at least,
you’re filled with determination or maybe… curiosity
what’s next?
only one way to find out.