Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Last Night

It's his teeth.
Again.
The hard, sharp, white edges
pushing through
soft, sensitive, pink gums.
This painful
process seems flawed in design.

The molars are the worst. They
push through,
recede,
push through again,
recede again,
before finally coming out for good.

His sleep is disturbed.
He can't settle
himself. His cries escalate, disturbing
our sleep. We take turns
going to him
because he is uncomfortable lying down.

I walk with him in my arms more steps
than I care
to count. I pace the floor for longer
than I want to track. Is
he asleep enough now? Or should I continue
another minute,
two minutes, five minutes?

I try putting him down. I rub
his back when
he stirs, settling him back
down. I ease up the crib rail.
He stays asleep.
I tiptoe across the room, avoiding

the creaky spots in the floor.
He stays asleep.
I carefully turn the door knob.
It clicks loudly.
He wakes crying, reaching for me.
I sigh and return to him.
Again.

3 comments:

Lisa F. said...

Oh CM, so sorry. I remember it well. it reminds me of Moxie likening it to sneaking away like a terrified ninja. wishing you strength!

Melba said...

I was doing the same thing last night too. And the night before that. And the night before that. :( Teething plus a cold = no sleep for all.

Annie's door has a creak if you open it more than about 8 inches. So after I get her to sleep and sneak my way to the door ninja style, I have to suck in my gut and squeeze through a too small opening (considering the doorknob) to avoid the squeak. I have about a 50/50 success rate.

So sorry caramama, I know it sucks. In more ways than one... its not just that you are exhausted and frustrated, but that you feel so badly for him too that he has to go through this. Double suckage.

Jac. said...

This poem is giving me PTSD flashbacks. Am so happy we are done with teething at the moment, and not looking forward to round two.

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