A pitch dark sky, a hidden moon.
Sturdy trees, wispy clouds.
A gust of wind, a sea of grass.
Behind the curtains, lies a pair of sleeping kids
nuzzling warm, fluffy blankets. Dreaming of make-believe worlds.
A quiet Earth. A calm Earth.
Tranqui-
beep.
-ility.
Life itself is sound asle-
beep.
-ep.
Beep.
BEEP.
BEEEEEEP!
Stumbling, half asleep, I shut the alarm.
Stumbling, half asleep, I head to the bathroom.
Stumbling, half asleep, I wake up my sister.
I get dressed. I eat breakfast. I catch the bus. I head to school.
RING!!!
Class begins. I pull out my instrument. I set up my music. And I play.
RING!!!
Class ends. Two parallel streams of endless people travel through the hallway. Chatter and excitement is all around me as I float along the current.
RING!!!
The teacher begins her lecture. Diligently, I copy what she writes on her board as the students around me joke among themselves.
RING!!!
I enter a room full of students already seated. I turn on the monitor and begin working.
RING!!!
In the following lines, please explain how the government is able to-
RING!!!
“Everyone please complete the assignment on Google Classroom before class is over.”
RING!!!
RINGGG!!!
RINGGGGG!!!
RINGGGGGGG!!!
I lock up my locker, hoist my bookbag over my shoulder, and head to the bus.
I plop down on my chair and stare at my endless To-Do List. I breathe in and out.
I pick up my pencil and begin working.
…4:00pm
…4:30pm
…5:00pm
…5:30pm
…6:00pm
…6:30pm
My finger falters and the pencil once in my hand drops onto my desk.
I slam my notebook, filled with unfinished problems, in between my textbook.
I lift up my head.
The sky... It’s pitch dark.
How is it nighttime already?
My chest tightens-
I still have so much left to do
My leg shakes anxiously-
I have to finish this
Tears well up in my eyes-
I have to finish… calm down
I need to finish… calm down
I CAN’T FINISH-
Calm down
Calm down?
Calm down
Calm down.
…7:00pm
…8:30pm
…10:00pm
….11:30pm
….1:00am
My exhausted body collapses onto my bed
And I drift off into a dreamless sleep….
Beep.
BEEP.
BEEEEEEP!
Stumbling, half asleep, I shut the alarm.
Stumbling, half asleep, I head to the bathroom.
Stumbling, half asleep, I wake up my sister.
I get dressed. I eat breakfast. I catch the bus. I head to school.
Class starts and ends.
Again.
And again.
School’s over. I’m home.
Do my homework, eat my dinner, head to bed...
The voices tell me that I should sleep earlier
I know…
The voices tell me that I need to be more productive
I know...
The voices tell me that I need to find the time to relax
I know...
The voices tell me that I need to calm down
The voices tell me that I need to-
I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW-
Then why?
Why aren’t you sleeping earlier?
I… I have too much
Why aren’t you being productive?
I- I’m trying
Why aren’t you finding time to relax?
I have no time
You should calm down-
IM TRYING IM TRYING BUT I-
I-
I CAN’T.
.
.
.
.
.
The sun rises
I don’t want to wake up
School starts
I don’t want to be here
School ends
I don’t want to go home and work
The sun sets
Bleeding…
The days bleed into each other.
Bleeding…
I’m bleeding from self-inflicted wounds.
I’m cut,
bruised,
scratched,
help
help
HELP.
.
.
.
Like a machine, I work.
I work every minute
of every hour
of every day
of every week
But…
I’m not a machine.
I’m human.
And I’m tired...
BEEP.
It’s morning once more
And I have to do it all over again.