By Umi Keezing<\/p>\n
as papers fall around me enveloping me<\/p>\n
in calculus problems and physics tests and grades<\/p>\n
I bat them away with a pencil but they only withdraw<\/p>\n
when the graphite forms the words or numbers that solve the puzzles<\/p>\n
which I attempt to address in the vain hope<\/p>\n
of completing my homework in time for a brief reprieve<\/p>\n
before the next onslaught of assignments threatens to engulf me<\/p>\n
because I immerse myself in academics the view through my window becomes<\/p>\n
abstract art the tree house in my backyard a fairytale<\/p>\n
from my childhood while the story in my English binder<\/p>\n
becomes increasingly real the letters sharpening as the autumn leaves outside<\/p>\n
blur with my deteriorating vision whether or not<\/p>\n
I study obscure concepts to gain insight into reality I end up<\/p>\n
distancing myself from the scent of my backyard the hubbub of Northampton<\/p>\n
and the embraces of my long-lost friends who also<\/p>\n
abandon the world to better analyze its mechanisms<\/p>\n
to be accepted to college where the workload piles higher<\/p>\n
and higher as offices replace dormitories the ceaseless cycle of studying<\/p>\n
synchronizes with the sleep cycle more than the revolutions of Earth<\/p>\n
dizzying me though I barely feel the lightheadedness due to<\/p>\n
my perpetual headache that only abates when I have time<\/p>\n
to pause on the sidewalk a breeze caressing my face and remember<\/p>\n
that tangibility exists outside of hands-on chemistry experiments<\/p>\n
and poignant poetry for an instant I recall the existence of a third dimension<\/p>\n
and search for escape routes from the two that imprison me<\/p>\n
before realizing that no such route exists without exertion<\/p>\n
that is not merely mental and is therefore beyond my brain-dominated<\/p>\n
self so I avert my nearsighted eyes from the treetops and fix them<\/p>\n
on my desktop of artificial wood and sharpen my pencil<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Umi Keezing as papers fall around me enveloping me in calculus problems and physics tests and grades I bat them away with a pencil but they only withdraw when the graphite forms the words or numbers that solve the puzzles which I attempt to address in the vain hope of completing my homework in … Continue reading stressed student by Umi Keezing<\/span>