The Other World

No. I don’t want to.

And I hit the button to give me another ten minutes.

I close my eyes again, rub my feet along the comforting fluff of my blanket, and try to return to the place I was only a moment ago. I can’t find it at first; that place of dreams from which I had been so abruptly plucked. I hug the pillow a little tighter, and allow my breathing to slow into a seeking, steady rhythm.

There it is; the edge where one world fades as entry to another. I cannot make them out, but colours and images begin to slowly swirl and collide. Indistinct; quiet voices merge into the background. This is the world I seek, but entry cannot be hurried. You cannot run directly to its gate. No, quiet and calm are the only entry tickets. I allow my body, in my mind, to wander slowly through the swirling images, meandering, as though without a purpose or a care, as though the minutes of the clock do not continue to tick away.

Ahh. The other world has noticed me and deemed me suitable for entry. Ever so slightly, I adjust my direction, heading toward the entry without startling the keepers of the gate. The distance closes, and my feet no longer step but drift effortlessly above the ground. My body is light. My minds swirls as though mixing paint.

The other world stops suddenly, eyes lifted, seeking, searching in the sky. What is that noise?

The gates are closing quickly. Images scatter, peace recedes and suddenly I hear it too. I’m sorry, other world. I don’t like the sound of my alarm either. I’ll take it away and try to return later when we can spend more time together.