14 ways to play hide & seek sleep (& avoid nightmares)

 

1. palm & pocket platters of lukewarm potato (mashed) & pâté (smashed)

2. apply balm of vanilla (tubed) and cafe latte (tombed)

3. peak under quilted covers of checkered gingham and navy plaid fleece

4. sneak over (then abandon) quarreling lovers of checkered pasts and wavy futures 

5. cover curious collections of rainbow glass trinkets that taunt

6. reveal calming collections of foggy glass thimbles that flaunt 

7. track futures. trick pasts. avoid counting trucks.

8. snack on antioxidant-rich letters of A. E, I, O & U (especially IOUs)

9. snitch on casual forgetters

10. stock nutrient-rich letters of B, C (calcium), M (magnesium), & D

11. stir favored recollections flavored of county fairies (caramel corn & cotton candy)

12. dispel & dispose (cuisinart / dyson / ____) recollections peppered of county jails
    (congealed corn & expired candy)

13. count. ships of many seas. sheep of many wools. shoes of many heels. hinges of
    many histories. heal. inhale. exhale. heal. inhale. exhale.

14. discount. recount. metabolic meters of mainstream metrics. wrap arms
    around/over/of limbs tight. avoid light. avoid cliches. sleep tight. good night.

 

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Jen Schneider is an educator who lives, writes, and works in small spaces throughout Pennsylvania. She is a Best of the Net nominee, with stories, poems, and essays published in a wide variety of literary and scholarly journals. She is the author of Invisible Ink (order at Toho Publishing), On Daily Puzzles: (Un)locking Invisibility (forthcoming, Moonstone Press), and Blindfolds, Bruises, and Breakups (forthcoming, Atmosphere Press).