in the nighttime

stillness in the nighttime

might be the greatest fear

for the nervous heart.

darkness, the eyes struggle

to maintain contract with

familiar figures, ideals of

safety and refuge, a lie.

that terrible urge at the

bottom of the stomach,

to run, to flee, to scream.

a constant reminder of

the crippling loneliness
that crawls desperately

into the mind of even the

most satisfied woman,

on some nights, when the

shadows cast those certain dreams.