Startling Darkness

One by one the lights go out.

The florescent sunshine makes me a pasty white.
They make circles under my eyes and
I dream of what the weather is outside.
No windows give me a glimpse of the gray world.

It's night when I arrive and night when I leave.
Sometimes when sustenance calls I join the living to
Speed along to grab some of its life rejuvenating forces.

This is a world of dry-erase boards
Their colors very bland.
I could draw myself a smiley face with yellow or blue.
Todo lists all over the place.
Checkmarks only rewarded with impossible work: completed.

There is no emotion, only political correctness
with a dash of "Hey, how's it going?"
Talk of no evil, do your work and dream.

The blood on the walls is the paper in your inbox.
The tears on your chin are the dirt between the keys in your keyboard.
The sweat on your brow: Smudges on the Screen.
Everyone laughs until you catch up.
It's getting darker now.
One by one the lights go out.