Sestina Poem

The crystalline water boiled, flowing over the small bag of tea,

The mug was a cocoa-colored brown, almost like chocolate. 

Suddenly a figure shows up behind me, was it real or imaginary?

I black out. Once I wake up, I realize I’m in the hospital.

A familiar song plays in my head, but I can’t remember the title, what was the name of the song?

A nurse said something to me, but I couldn’t hear it very well, did she say rewind or remind?

I passed out once again but I was awoken again. “Hey wake up! I need to remind

You to-” My mind grows blurry once more, but I can still smell the aroma of tea.

In my dreamstate I hear once again the familiar song,

I take in another breath, this time there was a sharp smell of chocolate,

I then wake up and look around. Still in the hospital.

I layed back down, silently hoping that this was all imaginary. 

Wait. But what would happen if this was all imaginary?

When did this all happen? I try to sit and think, I tried to remind

Myself what had happened. Why was I in the hospital?

Another nurse walks in, she is holding a foam cup filled with tea.

I take the cup, surprisingly it smelled of chocolate,

A tune plays in my head, I remember thinking to myself again, what is that song?

The melody plays over and over again, I begin to despise that stuipid song.

I wanted all of this to be over, I wanted all of this to just be imaginary.

I take a sip of the tea, it no longer smelled like chocolate, 

I hear two people yelling outside my room, “Okay! Okay! You don’t need to remind

Me! I get it!” I cover my ears, setting down the cup of tea. 

I shut my eyes tightly, repeating to myself: “I just wanna leave this hospital.”

It has now been over a week and I’m still imprisoned in this hospital.

The loud melodious number continues to play, but no one else can hear the song. 

Everyday the nurse walks in, everyday gifting me a cup of flavorless tea, 

Everyday, every minute, every second feels imaginary. 

I get it, we’re all stuck here you don’t need to remind 

All of us. You keep playing your tricks, evil glows in your eyes, which are the color of chocolate. 

It has now been two weeks, two weeks of the same routine, how I miss the taste of chocolate.

Two weeks. We’ve been trapped here for two weeks. Stuck in this hell you call a hospital.

Two unbearable weeks of you taunting me from my room saying “May I remind

“You, you’re stuck here.” You grin as I fall unconscious, being greeted by the tormenting song,

Oh how I wish that everything that has happened here had been imaginary. 

You scatter as the nurse taps my shoulder, in her hands an ice cold cup of tea. 

It is now week three, they hand me my bags, a small jar of tea and a bar of chocolate.

Though everything was very real and not imaginary, I was glad to be leaving the hospital. 

But as I leave, you remind me. “You can never get rid of the song.” 

-Alli