Wake up

I wake up
I’m not in my bed
My room smells different
My hands look different
I’m a different person...


I wake up
My head hurts
My back aches
My clothes smell
The sidewalk is cold
A man gives me change...


I wake up
I walk outside
The air smells of fish
The sand cradles my bare feet
The sun is warm on my face
And the ocean purrs on the horizon...


I wake up again
The walls are white
There is a tube in my nose
A woman asks if I can hear her
One blink for yes
Two blinks for no
She says she's sorry...


I wake up
I cry
My bed rocks slowly
A strange woman comes and holds me
I cry louder...


I wake up
The air is cold
The walls are dirty
My cot smells of puke and sweat
The guard walks by my cell...


I wake up again
My head is on the woman next to me
I hear a man ask for more peanuts
I look out the window and see clouds
The pilot says we are almost home...


And then I wake up
I know this warmth
I know these hands
And I know this place
I feel familiar
I feel fine
I feel normal
And then I wake up…