Fainting

Shock of pain,
then shock of shock,
and a struggle to keep the lamp steady and lit;
but darkness overtook, nonetheless.

An intervening interval,
until remembering remembering,
and to remember now again.

Remembering now,
light returned,
not all at once,
but in pieces pixel-like,
flickerings fluttering on,
cascading upwards
as from the bottom of a canvas
to the top of a landscape,
until the world was back,
as painted by the mind’s eye.

What of that interval,
one cannot know for certain;
but the soul remembers of the darkness
a relief at finding restful peace,
and a longing to remain there.

© 2011 by Elisabeth T. Eliassen