I awoke
to the deafening alarm clock,
that is seated
on my bedside table.
Gradually I sat up
and got out of bed.
Not soon after,
I felt a loss of balance
and a merging headache.

Walking to the bathroom
I looked in the mirror
to find,
a zombie-looking
creature.

I had wild hair
that grew in every direction,
dark blue circles under my eyes,
and indented pillow marks
that raced across my face.

Tearing at my hair with a comb
to try to tame the mess
and splashing cold water in my face
to try to wake myself up.

I picked out my clothes
forcing my legs
and arms
to go in the correct place.
Dragging my feet down the stairs
I went to the kitchen
and grabbed whatever stale food
that happened to be sitting around.

I then hobbled to the bus stop
that was just around the block
standing there
I waited….
and waited
The bus
was never
on time.

At school
I hung up my bookbag
and got ready for my first hour class.
There I pretended to listen,
by shaking my head
and saying yes
even if I didn’t know
what the question was.

I did the same for each hour
that passed by.
Then came lunch
where I had to scarf down
What the lunch ladies
called “chicken.”

More hours passed by
but they couldn’t have gone by
any slower.

Finally it was last hour,
I pretended again
until the last few seconds
when the clock struck three.

I grabbed my book bag
and got onto the bus
where it took me home.

There I only had
a few more hours
until the regular school day
started
over
again.