Too Close to Home

I am a child
And now all is well.
I sleep soundly in my bed at night.
A deep, childish sleep,
Like nothing at all is wrong.
And to me,
The world is perfect.
As it should be.

I am a teen
And now things are changing.
I sleep less, and worse when I do
A broken, teenaged sleep,
Like there is something wrong.
And to me,
The world is falling apart
At its seams.

I am an adult
And now there are problems wherever I look.
I haven’t slept for nearly a week, and before that was
A fearful, grown-up sleep,
Like everything’s gone wrong.
And to me,
It has.

Copyright 2009 by Rebecca Norman