Feb 2016
i.
Every Sunday I lay awake afraid to close my eyes because if I do, tomorrow will arrive.
ii.
I sound mad, erratic, desperate. I am. Dear God I'm always begging him. Help me! With what, I'm not so sure. With everything. Dear God. DEAR GOD. GOD! HELP ME. Help me get through today. Dear God once I begged you to let me be here and you answered. Now I beg you to get me out. I'm gratefully sorry.
iii.
Every morning a panic seizes my heart as I think of the day ahead, laboured breaths yet everything around me is going too fast. I swear the clock skips time. I want it to fly but I need it to stop. There's so much to do and 24 hours are just not enough.
iv.
An email pings my phone and everything freezes. It ruins my entire day. I should never have connected my phone and work emails.
v.
I'm having dinner with my family and all I can think about are the reports I have not yet written. I haven't marked the topic books and I still need to create resources for the maths topic. The line manager wants targets and I need to reply to my colleagues request for organising a buddy system. We're having a review on Thursday that I can't forget to prepare for. I still haven't filled out the outdoor visit forms.
v.
I can feel myself slowly being turned into who I swore I'd never be. I've started doing things every fibre of my being was against. People became percentage scores. All that matters is presentation in books. Forget that you know this child would never do this normally and write it up in the behaviour book. You don't have time to investigate or figure out his problem. He's wasting precious learning time and he needs to meet those targets. Everyone will judge me if he doesn't.
vi.
Once my entire house was painted and it took me over a week to notice. Once I used to read novels, watch movies, cook, workout and write poems. I can't remember the last time I did that. I work every weekend and every evening. I feel guilty when I am free like I'm forgetting a very important thing.
vii.
I'm 23 with the back ache problems of a 60 year old. I'm 23 and its hard to fall asleep. My own sleepwalking wakes me up as I recite my 'to do' list. I'm 23 and I think of giving up at least twice a week. I'm 23 and I miss my family who I live with. I miss myself. I'm 23 and life should not be the living dead.
I've developed a coping strategy. Just shut up and get on with it. Get up and get the job done.
It's all getting done as I become undone.
Every Sunday I lay awake afraid to close my eyes because if I do, tomorrow will arrive.
ii.
I sound mad, erratic, desperate. I am. Dear God I'm always begging him. Help me! With what, I'm not so sure. With everything. Dear God. DEAR GOD. GOD! HELP ME. Help me get through today. Dear God once I begged you to let me be here and you answered. Now I beg you to get me out. I'm gratefully sorry.
iii.
Every morning a panic seizes my heart as I think of the day ahead, laboured breaths yet everything around me is going too fast. I swear the clock skips time. I want it to fly but I need it to stop. There's so much to do and 24 hours are just not enough.
iv.
An email pings my phone and everything freezes. It ruins my entire day. I should never have connected my phone and work emails.
v.
I'm having dinner with my family and all I can think about are the reports I have not yet written. I haven't marked the topic books and I still need to create resources for the maths topic. The line manager wants targets and I need to reply to my colleagues request for organising a buddy system. We're having a review on Thursday that I can't forget to prepare for. I still haven't filled out the outdoor visit forms.
v.
I can feel myself slowly being turned into who I swore I'd never be. I've started doing things every fibre of my being was against. People became percentage scores. All that matters is presentation in books. Forget that you know this child would never do this normally and write it up in the behaviour book. You don't have time to investigate or figure out his problem. He's wasting precious learning time and he needs to meet those targets. Everyone will judge me if he doesn't.
vi.
Once my entire house was painted and it took me over a week to notice. Once I used to read novels, watch movies, cook, workout and write poems. I can't remember the last time I did that. I work every weekend and every evening. I feel guilty when I am free like I'm forgetting a very important thing.
vii.
I'm 23 with the back ache problems of a 60 year old. I'm 23 and its hard to fall asleep. My own sleepwalking wakes me up as I recite my 'to do' list. I'm 23 and I think of giving up at least twice a week. I'm 23 and I miss my family who I live with. I miss myself. I'm 23 and life should not be the living dead.
I've developed a coping strategy. Just shut up and get on with it. Get up and get the job done.
It's all getting done as I become undone.
