The Work Week

Mental illness meets the mundane.

Photo by Maarten Muller on Unsplash

Sometimes
it’s okay to pride yourself
on the fact you’re still alive
at 7pm,
that you gradually survived
another dull, ordinary day.

It’s an accomplishment
to know you didn’t crawl
completely out of your skin,
and leave your dermis
spread like a starfish
on the lawn.

You didn’t pluck hairs
from your head
one by one, and drop them
out your car window
until your scalp itched with fire.

You didn’t look at every
turn or sharp curb
with morbid interest,
wondering how loud the tire
would blow when you crashed
your car into a lamp post.

Sometimes
it’s okay to trust that
you managed something strong
which many others did not,
you held onto hope
just enough on this
Work Week Wednesday.

© Alexandra Bragg, 2017; edited 2023.