New theory questions why we sleep

Posted on August 26, 2009 by Dave Bonta

This same screech owl
was trilling at 4:00 p.m.
from across the field.

Water from the tap —
it’s still moving when I drink it.

I trembled like that once, too,
after days without sleep.
I felt invincible.

Gray fur spreads
through the coffee grounds.
I’m bleary-eyed again.

*

For Read Write Prompt #89: it came from the news.
(Update) Other responses are here.

About Dave Bonta

Dave Bonta (bio) crowd-sources his problems by following his gut, which he shares with one quadrillion of his closest microbial friends --- a tight-knit, symbiotic community comprising some 500 different species of bacteria, fungi, and protozoa.
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15 Responses to New theory questions why we sleep

  1. tammy says:
    August 27, 2009 at 3:08 am

    I enjoyed this poem. I wish I didn’t have to sleep ….

  2. Therese Broderick says:
    August 27, 2009 at 9:57 pm

    I like how each stanza takes note of a different physical sense (hearing, taste, feeling/trembling, sight). And, just like the man who can’t take a sleeping break, each physical sensation can’t take a break — the owl’s voice keeps trilling; the drinking water keeps moving; the body kept trembling; the eyesight keeps blurring. I’m glad I read this fine poem, but now I’m very tired.

  3. Therese Broderick says:
    August 28, 2009 at 10:57 am

    Thank you, Dave. I try to leave specific, helpful, appreciative comments for as many RWP poets as I can. But if I get too “fancypants” :) with my comments on RWP, please let me know and I’ll dress down.

    • Dave says:
      August 28, 2009 at 4:50 pm

      Oh lord no. I just wish I could do the same. Despite majoring in comparative literature, I never really learned the art of effective literary analysis.

  4. Derrick says:
    August 28, 2009 at 11:03 am

    Hi Dave,

    I agree with you about Therese’ analysis. I wish I could divine such points as readily. She has helped me to ‘see’ your poem.

  5. SarahJ says:
    August 28, 2009 at 2:07 pm

    Good one, Dave. This was a great prompt.

  6. Nathan says:
    August 29, 2009 at 6:48 pm

    Great poem, Dave. I once went without sleep for several days and felt quite invincible. I don’t recommend it.

  7. carolee says:
    August 30, 2009 at 11:26 am

    you mean to tell me i’m not invincible? so many naysayers.

    dave, i like how this leaps from image to image — the connections are subtle and powerful. yeah, what therese says. constant motion.

    • Dave says:
      August 30, 2009 at 7:21 pm

      Thanks, Carolee. I don’t know about you, but this is a lesson I will probably never fully learn. I love sleeping, but I love all the stuff I can do when I’m awake even more.

  8. Dave says:
    August 30, 2009 at 5:29 pm

    Fantastic, Dave – it reads like a collection of really wonderful haikus laid one on top of the other.