My Brother's Insomnia
       

A boy ties (but will not remember how)
An intricate knot that slips at the slightest tug.

He remembers reading that drops of blood
From Medusa's lopped head bred cobras and asps.

He cares little for snakes, but fears spiders more.
The recluse spider is his least favorite.

Some nights in bed he holds his breath and is dead.
Some nights in bed he holds his breath and listens

To wind rattle the unlocked front door,
To time rustle and scratch in the attic like mice.

He cannot remember if it is summer
Or winter, if sleet or a wren pecks the window.

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Copyright © 2014 Eric Pankey All rights reserved
from Crow-Work
Milkweed Editions
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission