.
There Are Not Enough
Hours in the Day
There are not enough hours in the day
to take all of the naps I want to take.
As soon as I have sprung up from the hay
I think I’d rather dream than be awake—
so long as they are of the pleasant sort,
not one where I am trying to outrace
a serial killer chasing me for sport,
and me without a gun or can of mace;
or one where there’s a lion in the lodge
who knows exactly where to turn his rage—
if skillfully its cuspids I can dodge
I’ll have to face a ruled, unwritten page.
Such is the writer’s life, one understands,
when he has too much free time on his hands.
.
.
Geoffrey Smagacz writes from Mexico (mostly) and South Carolina. His poetry has been published in various literary magazines and e-zines, including 14 by 14, Dappled Things and the Society of Classical Poets. His latest murder mystery, Reportedly Murdered (Wipf and Stock, 2022), is now available through online venues. A collection of his fiction, published under the title of A Waste of Shame and Other Sad Tales of the Appalachian Foothills (Wiseblood Books, 2013), won the 2014 Independent Publisher gold medal for Best Mid-Atlantic Regional Fiction. www.geoffreysmagacz.com, @Ge0ffreyW on Twitter.
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What great fun. And a fantastic final couplet, to boot.
Thanks for the read, Geoffrey.
Thank you!
I love this poem with its vivid humor from possible dreams after taking a nap. Since I have retired to take naps and write, I can identify with what you wrote.
Thank you, Roy Eugene.
I too like dreams of the pleasant sort, but I notice there are none in this poem. What a life when you can’t even enjoy naps because frightening imaginary chases keep you away from the ruled page! No rest for the weary?
Thanks, Margaret. These are classic “avoidance dreams.”
Thanks for your poem that was a joy to read.
Thanks, Allegra!
Interesting thought. Myself, I don’t care for dreams. If they’re pleasant, then waking up is always a disappointment; if not… well, that’s self-explanatory.
Of course, if you’ve read my poetry, you know I don’t care much for the unreal anyway.
Thanks, Joshua. I make it up as I go along.
This is a really fun poem— than you, Geoffrey.
(Thank you.)
Thanks, Cynthia!
“Back of the net” as they say over here. I really enjoyed this Geoffrey. Thanks a bunch!
Thank you, Jeff!
A nice take on the interplay between wakefulness and sleep, Geoffrey, and a subject that could be expanded upon, whether in poetry or prose, almost endlessly. As a poet myself, I find the interplay of fact and fantasy to be in constant tension, a state of mind that often leads to good ends.
Thanks, C.B.! Literature is rife with dreams, both sleeping and waking.