Empty Holes for Eyes
These recurring false awakenings
feel too close to vivid comatose
states of horror that never end.
I look at myself in the mirror
and have no eyes. Then I realize
if I really had no eyes, I wouldn’t be
able to see. Which means I’m still stuck
in a dream. What if I can’t wake myself
up this time? What if next time I never
wake again? Can’t find out if my eyes
are real. If I still exist. If I’m detached
from reality or if I am dead now.
Broken balloons covering the holes
where my eyes used to be.
Juliet Cook doesn’t fit inside an Easy-Bake Oven and rarely cooks. Her poetry has appeared in a peculiar multitude of literary publications. She is the author of numerous poetry chapbooks, most recently including “red flames burning out” (Grey Book Press, 2023), “Contorted Doom Conveyor” (Gutter Snob Books, 2023), “Your Mouth is Moving Backwards” (Ethel Zine & Micro Press, 2023), “REVOLTING” (Cul-de-sac of Blood, 2024), and “Blue Stingers Instead of Wings” (Pure Sleeze Press, 2025). Her most recent full-length poetry book, “Malformed Confetti” was published by Crisis Chronicles Press. You can find out more at https://julietcook.weebly.
