The Night Bird--A Poem

I found myself awake at 4:00 AM one morning, awakened from a dream. In my dream were images from the past—the faces of friends, lovers, and family appeared before my eyes in a random pattern. One face was emphasized and then another; calling my name before receding, only to be replaced by another face. People transformed into events, things I remembered from childhood. The distant past gave way to more recent images as I watched my life play out before my eyes, one random moment at a time. Memories from the past became actions I did not recall—things I hadn’t (yet?) done. The faces returned, crying out in unison, warning me to be careful and advising me to remember the anniversaries. Remember the anniversaries. Someone said that to me before, a long time ago.

When I awoke, I heard the sound of a bird outside my window. Completely awake in the middle of the night, I resigned myself to the moment and found my journal. I remembered the anniversaries and wrote these words.

 

The night bird wails its lonely cry

I hear it as I dream

Shadows rest beside me now

Things aren’t quite what they seem

 

A love that’s lost but not forgotten

Haunts this tortured brain

If I once had you in my life

Why can’t you be again?

 

A gentle touch, a quiet voice

That scatters all my sorrows

That speaks the words I want to hear

But mentions no tomorrows

 

Fools like me under a spell

Of dreams I couldn’t rationalize

You’re gone too soon from by my side

My bed—a jail made with your lies

 

Phantom lovers cast in gloom  

A ghost’s caress I’m waiting for

No sounds are heard, I lay alone

The night bird wails its cry no more