Sleep snapped its fingers all night,
but refused for a moment to alight.
Snichy-snatchy promises made,
but not meant and not kept.
Awareness - a balloon pushing
the head into grotesque shapes
thin enough to see through,
too flexible to squeeze away...
the riots of thought and remembrance.

4:00 AM
Ugly time, when reality
is caught in the headlight glare of reason;
refuses to be molded into something
rounded and melded.
Something less likely to flense our minds.