Perpetual Nightmare

8 Comments

Poem Commentary

Some nightmares never end...

Perpetual Nightmare

Lying here half asleep,
In a subconscious state.
Having prayed my soul to keep,
My mind's still half awake.
There's no sound, not a peep,
The silence escalates.
I finally try counting sheep,
Then things deteriorate.

Something in the attic creaks,
The ceiling fan starts to shake.
The ticking clock's rhythmic beat,
Begins to resonate.
I'm feeling numb, my limbs are weak,
Light dims then dissipates.
Barely lucid, unable to speak,
I start to hallucinate.

I try to take one last peek.
But it becomes too late.

And I begin to dream...

Mind drifting ever deep,
My thoughts turn into scenes.
Ghostly vision vapors seep,
Through billowing walls of steam.
Standing on a ledge that's steep,
Balancing on a beam.
Whispered voices call to me.
Things aren't what they seem.

I notice several shadows,
Inching their way toward me.
I turn my back to retreat,
Then feel a hand grab me.
I struggle desperately to get free,
But cannot move my feet.
The situation grows more bleak,
I close my eyes, fain defeat,
Then reclaim reality.

I hear broken laughter,
Echoing in a breeze.
I sit up and raise my head,
Wrap my arms around my knees.
My body then rises off the bed,
I'm floating effortlessly.
I feel the eyes of the dead,
Staring straight at me.

Something on me is crawling,
My legs start to burn.
Bugs are moving beneath my sheets,
Wiggling like thousands of worms.
I try to move my frozen feet,
My stomach starts to churn.
My body can no longer compete,
I scream but hear no words.

There comes a distant knocking,
Someone opens a door.
I see the crack of a light,
Feel sanity start to restore.
The light continues to get bright,
It stretches across the floor.
The evil that was the night,
Possesses me no more.

I see the sun start to rise,
Then shadows disappear.
I'm no longer terrified,
As morning time grows near.
As my room fills with light,
My eyes, too, fill with tears.
Then I finally realize,
What's really happened here.
I've survived another night,
Conquered my worst fears.

I start to get out of bed,
For some reason I cannot move.
My arms are pinned at my side,
I'm trapped in a glass cocoon.
The walls around me are crystallized,
I can see my surrounding room.
I'm trapped inside a crypt of some kind,
Transparently consumed.
I struggle not to lose my mind,
To escape this invisible tomb.

I then relax, lay back and wait,
Lie still and start to stare.
The harder that I concentrate,
The sooner I'm out of here.
But somehow I feel I'm awake,
Unconsciously unaware.
I'm trapped inside my mental state,
I pray to God that I escape,
Find an exit, a way to wake,
From this perpetual nightmare.


Copyright © October 2010
Kevin Mooney

kmm001
103110

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Tempestlady commented on Perpetual Nightmare

11-29-2010

A bit long for me but wow it had some impact! Reminded me of scary dreams when i thought i was being attacked, or when I partially woke up from the anesthesia in the or. and when i accidently tried to wake after too long at the bar. It really got into my psyche and did a number on my calm. If that was your intention then this poem is the bomb! Write on.....

gogant commented on Perpetual Nightmare

11-11-2010

Hey Kev.......we all at sometime in life, experience what you pen here.....those darkened nights, quivering, hoping for it to end......those dreams, those terrible dreams, will they ever end.....I wonderful bit of scaryriosis.............................gogant

kmooney

11/11/2010

Thanks my friend. I know exactly what you mean...

MindNumbing commented on Perpetual Nightmare

11-04-2010

Man... that's some nightmare! I had a dream once (or maybe it wasn't a dream ~ who knows?), I was lying in bed on my back and someone at the foot of the bed grabbed my ankle and started pulling. I opened my eyes and saw a black shadow dart away from me. I thought it was my husband for a second, until I realized he was sawing logs right next to me. You've done an amazing job with this, Kevin... the descriptions are horrifyingly vivid and the rhyme scheme, as always with your poems, is top notch. Nicely done, my friend.

kmooney

11/04/2010

Thanks Michelle. I was going for that feeling, trying to creep the reader out. I, too, have had a history of very vivid nightmares...Kevin.

Teardrops commented on Perpetual Nightmare

11-03-2010

Makes me think we are in the same dream class lol this is wonderful and i couldnt put it down loved it Marie

ginga commented on Perpetual Nightmare

11-03-2010

A creepy nightmare that doesn't seem to end. Great images and panic reignes supreme. ginga

Poetry is what is lost in translation.

Robert Frost (1875-1963) American Poet.

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