Anticipation

Oh No
By Big Frank Dickinson

A flashing light in the rearview mirror;
Midnight telephone’s blast of fear;
The watched phone that never rings;
The screaming silence a gaff brings.

A manila envelope at your door;
That lump that wasn’t there before;
A shadow leaking from the alley;
Money owed that will not tally.

The lost grip and subsequent slip.
The bedside monitor’s sudden blip.
The memory that won’t let you rest;
The necessary but forgotten test.

The silence of the alarm unheard;
The openhearted offer spurned.
The only possible option closed;
The painful secret now exposed.

The shock inhabits all of you
From head through heart it’s true;
In fact what really vexed
Is what you think comes next.