27 October 2008 | Vol. 8, No. 3
Three Dreams of Waking
I.
When I woke in our small boat I knew
only the sound of water. His words were
something else the night had changed.
He had not noticed my sleeping
or chose to ignore it. His story, perhaps,
something he needed to release:
the black world holding him close
and alone for his act. "Every word is true,
I swear," he said, his voice quiet
but everywhere like an insect's hum.
II.
Before my eyes opened there was the rhythm
of my father's gait. I wasn't sure
where we were going or where I had fallen asleep.
For the moment there was only this.
III.
On the floor in yet another apartment
the building demands my attention.
"I can help you," it says in my dream.
I see me in my room inside of it. "Don't go."
It was a woman, the building, in my dream.
"I just got here," I said aloud, worried and waking.
"Now leave me alone." Then I left and told everyone
how we had slept together.
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About the author:
Steven Breyak really likes being a poet but would also like to be a short story writer. Another thing he would really like is to have a great job at some university you've all heard of to talk about in this sentence, other than his great job with Emerson College's Young Writers in the summer of 2008. Around here, he'd like to mention a fellowship he received that would make all of you say, "Oh, that's why he's famous," despite his lack of fellowship and fame. You can read more of his work on the Web and in print in places such as Poets and Artists, Thieves Jargon, Night Train, Softblow, Tattoo Highway, Sawbuck, and Word Riot. He is search-engine friendly so feel free to search and read.
For further reading:
See the complete list of work by Steven Breyak at 42opus. Browse the contents of 42opus Vol. 8, No. 3, where "Three Dreams of Waking" ran on October 27, 2008. List other work with these same labels: poetry.
