Only Self Talk

More of a self-remembrance

Photo by Tristan Gevaux on Unsplash

riding in the bus
the only, one and only, self-talk
he had to have
which is more of a reminder
or an order
to the machine
the thought machine
was:
I do not want you
to put me to sleep now
I ain’t sleeping now
thank you.
then immediately
the machine rebelled:
then what else am I to do
if not to put you to sleep
he said:
I do not know
I ain’t sleeping now
the machine came again
with its torture chatter:
how am I to do that
how am I to not
put you to sleep
and then he realized
there was no use
convincing a mechanical program
and simply stayed awake
ready to spontaneously
eat up the life within
and around him
as the bus moved.