affliction

somewhere,
on the other side of the world
somebody must have tossed
a stone into a pond
a bit too far
because for the last couple days
i have felt increasingly
off-kilter.

the wind must have blown
at just the right angle
for that stone to sink
into deeper waters
than it would have.

then the turtle, dwelling
at the bottom of the pond
while chasing after a tadpole
must have nudged the stone
a little to the left
letting it reach depths
it never should have reached.

so now,
i find myself,
listless,
sitting at this desk
in a dimly lit room
as the sun sets outside
writing
about this seasonal affliction.

i'm waiting for spring
when
the icy sheet covering
the pond will thaw,
and a child,
fascinated by the glint of
something in the water
will reach in and retrieve
that smooth, polished stone
that was weighing me down
all through the winter.