Summary: A collection of assorted poetry and verse I've written over the years.
Categories: Poetry/Songs Characters: None
Genres: Angst, Fantasy, Horror, Humor, Science Fiction, Supernatural
Warnings: Death, Violence
Challenges:
Series: None
Chapters: 27 Completed: No
Word count: 11588 Read: 41084
Published: 09/24/14 Updated: 07/22/19
End Notes:
-circa 1999 - 12/04/02
Much like with "Ghost Towns" there were a couple lines that found their way into the Book of Hondo, but this piece didn't really come into its own until a couple years later, when I lived in Oregon. For me, at least, there were only two seasons: Rainy Season, and Allergy Season. Before I discovered Claritin had gone over-the-counter, '02 was the worst year for allergies in my life, as regular meds just weren't cutting it, and I eventually wound up with a massive sinus infection that summer. Much as I loved the Willamette Valley, the Valley just didn't love me back. :(
At the time, I was working as a factory temp drone in Springfield, doing 12-hour days, sometimes 6 days a week, and my room was upstairs, meaning that I slept in a sauna when I actually got to. My sinus infection eventually got so bad, I had to sleep propped up, because I would randomly stop breathing, and wake up coughing and sputtering. As you can imagine, that made falling back asleep a difficult proposition. :|
One of those times, I must've stayed flatlined longer than usual, as all I can remember is nothingness. A darkness darker than black. A silence so complete, my ears didn't even ring. A stillness so perfect, it was terrifying. The Void.
Time being rather subjective in states like that, I have no idea how long that lasted, though I doubt it could've been more than a minute or so, or I wouldn't be here writing this. Still, it haunted me for a long time, and the more I thought about it, the more I concluded that it was simply an interesting example of how subjective near-death experiences actually are. In the end, I guess it just means that, in my heart of hearts, I just don't expect much of an afterlife...
It was only later, after the Holiday Temp Season fizzled out, and I had all the time in the world for several months of unemployment, that I revisited "Wrong Track" and realized that, rather than some kid getting cold feet about running away (which never really fit my own life story anyway), it made a perfect framework for recounting the day that death scared me back to life.