Kindling

How much kindling of stress
can the mind endure
in the course of a day
before the body erupts
as a screaming rage in inferno?

Each incident added after sunrise
is another stick heap upon the brain’s firepit.
If that magic number isn’t reached before slumber,
it slowly vaporizes for another day.

All the calming antics
help to erode the pile,
but some days it just accumulates
until the eyes blaze with frustration,
head mutates into insane ogre,
beast within takes charge with torch for thoughts.

Perhaps this helps explain
why aliens who have always possess this knowledge,
since they did create “Deep Thought,”
are very selective on how they contact,
no doubt being able to discern
who is not yet exhausted that day’s limit,
offering in their own mystical ways
little glimpses into their lives
in hopes it will keep the number down.

Most likely having some super files
with every means they’ve uses
to help ease the load upon the conscious,
hasn’t quite been completely successful,
but that might be from the times
they crossed that total themselves.