Dream

Someone's Trying to Tell Me Something

I dreamed

I was lying face down on the floor

as if I’d just fallen there.

Paralyzed.

People tried to get me up,

but I kept thinking

about all the negative things

I tell myself.

You’re an idiot, a failure,

stupid, rude, awkward, shy,

thoughtless, insensitive,

ugly, fat, lazy, stingy, boring.

The list went on and on.

Those words slip in easily

when you think them one at a time,

but when you hear them all at once,

they sound ridiculous.

It stands to reason

that one person

who tries do what’s right

all their lives can’t be that bad.

Never do anything right?

Everyone has to do something right

some time, even if it’s by accident.

I started laughing

and got off the floor,

with a resolve

to speak to myself

more kindly.