© roger bultot
“I haven’t slept in years.”
“Why’s that, do you think?” The therapist sucked his pencil thoughtfully.
“As soon as I try to sleep I have visions of dying. Even as a child. I’d shut my eyes and I’d see my death. It didn’t stop me sleeping then. Now I’m older each night I fear death will take me.
‘You know that’s an irrational thought.”
“I know but I can’t help it.”
“Tonight you’ll sleep. I’ll hypnotize you to believe you won’t die and you’ll sleep like a dead man.”
The headlines read Dead man found in bedroom after the fire.
In response to the above photo prompt for Friday Fictioneers.
About Irene Waters 19 Writer Memoirist
I began my working career as a reluctant potato peeler whilst waiting to commence my training as a student nurse. On completion I worked mainly in intensive care/coronary care; finishing my hospital career as clinical nurse educator in intensive care. A life changing period as a resort owner/manager on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu was followed by recovery time as a farmer at Bucca Wauka. Having discovered I was no farmer and vowing never again to own an animal bigger than myself I took on the Barrington General Store. Here we also ran a five star restaurant. Working the shop of a day 7am - 6pm followed by the restaurant until late was surprisingly more stressful than Tanna. On the sale we decided to retire and renovate our house with the help of a builder friend. Now believing we knew everything about building we set to constructing our own house. Just finished a coal mine decided to set up in our backyard. Definitely time to retire we moved to Queensland. I had been writing a manuscript for some time. In the desire to complete this I enrolled in a post grad certificate in creative Industries which I completed 2013. I followed this by doing a Master of Arts by research graduating in 2017. Now I live to write and write to live.
Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 
Now that’s unlucky. 😉
Clever idea.
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Thanks Mick. Unlucky indeed.
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Now that became a self-fulfilling prophecy….Maybe our irrational fears serve a purpose ? Nice one.
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Yes. Perhaps sometimes no sleep can save you from permanent sleep.
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Aaahh…the irony.
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Absolutely.
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sometimes the cure sucks…
Randy
“The operation was a success, the patient died.”
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LOL. He probably would have preferred no sleep to permanent sleep.
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You write dark humor so well. I’m chuckling and shaking my head. Love those last two lines!
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Thanks Charli. Glad to bring a chuckle.
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People messing with your head… no good ever comes of it. 🙂 Different take.
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Yes you should follow our own instincts. 🙂
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Ouch! At least he died well rested. Great spin on the prompt.
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Thanks. I think he would have said “I’d prefer to be sleepless than dead”
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That’s put me off the idea of hypnotism for good, Irene. 🙂 As a near-insomniac, the idea appealed before. But permanent sleep’s not on my agenda just yet … Clever story and well written.
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Thanks Millie. Yes permanent sleep is to be avoided. Hope you can resolve your lack of sleep some other way.
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Oh, I just keep on reading and usually doze … eventually. Thanks for the kind thought.
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Stay away from that therapist…unless you want to get a permanent fix without even knowing your getting it!
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Absolutely.
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Of all times he needed to be awake! Luck wasn’t on his side. Great Story Irene.
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Thanks Joy.
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Glad to know that when I’m awake every morning at 4 am that it’s for a reason. Ha ha I just thought it was menopause. 😉
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LOL Perhaps you just explained why I wake at 4am every day. I thought it was because I was a morning person.
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Oh the irony of that sleep…
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Has to be a moral there somewhere….
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Who says dreams can’t come true? Poor guy was just dreaming the wrong dream.
Well written, Irene.
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Thanks Russell. Too late to tell him that….
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Oh my! That was quite a premonition. Unique response to the prompt.
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Thanks Caerlynn. I’m always amazed at how many unique pieces come from the same photo.
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Me too! Sometimes I think it’s the best part of this exercise.
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