Written by Darlene Glover
A subtle whisper across my cheek,
faint as a butterfly wing
interrupts a dream.
Half-asleep, I brush off this whisper,
only to feel something scurry
into my ear, my hair and my bed.
Instantly awake, scrabbling to my feet
thrashing the linens
for the arachnid of my phobias.
Heart hammering, yammering invectives
into the blackened night, searching for the light
to reveal a feather,
freed from my pillow.
Despite a self-deprecating laugh,
there’ll be no more sleep tonight.