Waking Up

Waking Up You never die in dreams, you wake up: From sucking sands, striking snakes, Skidding cars, burning buildings, Blazing pistols, the interminable fall You spring awake in the nick of time, victorious, Like Houdini bursting from his chains below And breaking the calm surface of the water To triumphant screams and cheers. Yet you mark your escape silently, stifling joy. In the cheerless dark You feel the cold chains Of an inescapable fact Permanendy coiled about you. And you know That wakingup from this dream Will kill you. ISAAC WALKER Isaac Walker teaches in the English Department of California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo. ...