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Day 94 - After Mitochondria by Max Wallis - Write about the fuse that saves you...
New research suggests the reason we might sleep is because our mitochondria are leaky, tiny sparks of energy spilling out, signalling the body to shut down and repair. Sleep, then, is less mercy than circuitry: a fuse that saves us from burning out.
Today, write about the fuse that saves you. What shuts you down before the overload? What small, unseen system keeps you alive?
Here’s my poem, After Mitochondria:
After Mitochondria
by Max Wallis
My body is a breaker,
tripped by its own wiring.
My cells leak light,
electrons scatter, secrets
I can no longer hold in.
Sleep comes, but not mercy
the cut of power,
a forced surrender.
Circuits snap,
the system quiets itself.
I think of smaller animals,
hearts beating too fast to last.
I think of myself
how fatigue is soldered
into the body I live in,
how every night
I am asked to shut down
to survive.
How the brain defragments while I sleep
as though dreams stitch me a new tomorrow.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aftershockpoetry.substack.com/subscribe
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aftershockpoetry.substack.com/subscribe
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By Max Wallis' Daily Aftershock Writing Prompts (The Aftershock Review)New research suggests the reason we might sleep is because our mitochondria are leaky, tiny sparks of energy spilling out, signalling the body to shut down and repair. Sleep, then, is less mercy than circuitry: a fuse that saves us from burning out.
Today, write about the fuse that saves you. What shuts you down before the overload? What small, unseen system keeps you alive?
Here’s my poem, After Mitochondria:
After Mitochondria
by Max Wallis
My body is a breaker,
tripped by its own wiring.
My cells leak light,
electrons scatter, secrets
I can no longer hold in.
Sleep comes, but not mercy
the cut of power,
a forced surrender.
Circuits snap,
the system quiets itself.
I think of smaller animals,
hearts beating too fast to last.
I think of myself
how fatigue is soldered
into the body I live in,
how every night
I am asked to shut down
to survive.
How the brain defragments while I sleep
as though dreams stitch me a new tomorrow.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aftershockpoetry.substack.com/subscribe
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aftershockpoetry.substack.com/subscribe