Bedtime in Budapest

After navigating the city scape

in the summer heat

it is wonderful to settle in a spacious

air conditioned room

But it was not long after my arrival

that I soon began to crash

But the depth of the slumber

was not something that I had anticipated

It was one of those nights that rarely happen

In fact the sleep was so utterly encompassing

that I lost any awareness of my body and mind

Such a rare hiatus

as normal sleep always seems

to be accompanied by at least some sense of self

But it was almost like death

or at least as I had imagined it to be

Everything was shut down

Total blackness

and no communication between the parts

But I must confess that at least on one occasion

a slight memory did seem to surface

I felt the side of my face pressed deeply into my pillow

Strangely my mouth was open

and I could feel spittle dripping upon the case

But it was a pleasant mnemosyne

Nothing like a Greek god interrupting the scene

More like an ordinary child dripping wet

separated from a beautiful nursemaid not far from the stream

But maybe it was somewhat similar to a dog

Or a hungry cow searching for a cud

But this was just a brief moment in time

And it was the abyss that really came to be

Floating but I really wouldn’t call it space

Because space has sensation

But what is a vacuum when nothing can be felt at all?

But perhaps this is a vagary chance, a trance or a ghostly wraith

or spate

Yet I would like to consider it non-existence

Do you think that it could be true?

Is it possible to die in one’s sleep

and with no recollection somehow gather one’s wits

and decide to come back to see all of you far too soon?

And if it happened who would really know?

But I tell you this was no ordinary sleep

Perhaps I had felt the sensation or the lack thereof

at least a few times before

But it had been such a long, long time ago

And you know what?

It really felt great

I woke up refreshed

and my energy percolated through my veins

And I felt happy

But it was such a strange form of happiness

Almost elation

Yet I had no idea from where it came from

I remember feeling this way when I was five or six

Deep exhilaration as I anticipated the upcoming day

But I will consider it a mystical experience

if ever there is such a thing.