Singing Fan and All That

CHARITY EMBLEY

March 18, 2020

Whir, hum, whir, hum

Lulls me to sleep

Sways my hair

Soothes my forehead

I close my eyes.

Whir, hum, whir, hum

I stretch my arm

Slam! Boom!

Doors closing, music blaring

I open my eyes.

Whir, hum, whir, hum

I wait for silence

Cars zooming by

Train whistling

I close my eyes

Whir, hum, whir, hum

Vroom!

Creaks from the ceiling

My cat sneezes

I open my eyes

Whir, hum, whir, hum

He threw his head 

Let out a loud, humorless laugh

I stare at the ceiling

I close my eyes

Whir, hum, whir, hum

Tick, tack, tick, tack

My mind meanders in random thought

Peal of thunder reverberating 

I open my eyes

Whir, hum, whir, hum

Beats of rain approaching

I shiver from the cold and sigh

My thoughts flying like a kite

I close my eyes

Whir, hum, whir, hum

An engine roared

I groan and moan

My head is pounding like a drum

I open my eyes

Whir, hum, whir, hum

Every sound replays in my mind

My anxiety starts the roller coaster up all over again

I was so close to drifting off

This is COVID-19 self-isolation.

CHARITY EMBLEY is an associate professor of Education at Odessa College. She is also a consultant for the Asian American Curriculum Project under Advancing Justice Los Angeles. Charity has published a short story, “The Doorknob,” for the Fall 2019 Issue (Volume 8, Issue 2) and a poem, “A Certain Bewilderment,” for the Spring 2019 (Volume 8, Issue 3) for the Texas Association for Literacy Education newsletter. Her article, “K-12 Literature with a Filipino Flavor,” will soon appear in the Teacher Librarian: The Journal for School Library Professionals.