You are camping
in the south
somewhere that is
semi-desert
that is hot and dry
in the daytime
but that cools down
cools right down
at night
You are camping and you wake up one morning
in your sleeping bag
and the sun is already blazing
over the horizon
the birds are awake
and it’s a brand new day
But something is wrong
something is not quite right
you are lying on your back
in your sleeping bag
you are lying
on your back
and something
is on your stomach
You feel a weight there
like a sleeping cat
like a sleeping lover’s head
but
it is not a cat
and it is definitely not a lover.
What do you do when you
wake up in your sleeping bag
with a rattlesnake on your stomach?
You wonder if you are dreaming
but you do not stir yourself
because you know you are not dreaming
you think you must be mistaken
that this is not camping
there can be no snake
but you know you are not
mistaken
You panic
but suppress the urge to panic
before you move because panicking
will wake up and
potentially agitate
the snake
You lie very, very still
you deliberately relax your entire body.
you take slow, deep breaths
you think of the people you love
and the people who love you.
You think of solutions.
You think about very, very
carefully unzipping
your sleeping bag and opening it up
but you don’t do this
because it will wake-up
and potentially agitate the snake
You think of a time bomb.
You think of anesthesia.
You try to remember
what you are supposed to do if this ever happens to you.
You try to remember the cure
for snakebite.
© Hilary Peach 2014