Most nights, my toddler rejects sleep. She wriggles, bounces, and laughs hysterically. The suggested remedies work for a moment. Those nights, I hold her close with my body. I gently secure her little arms so she can’t scratch her anxiety into mine. Google says restlessness is a common condition with neurodivergence. My mother used to find me asleep by whichever door thwarted my escape, thankful her locks held. So under the whirring fan, I exhaustedly hum nursery rhymes, understanding the allure of night and the wonder of wide-eyed dreaming. When she slumbers, I kiss her until the ubiquitous dread subsides.
Susanna Blagrove is a Jamaican writer and poet. She loves reading, writing, and going to the river/beach with her family, to read and write.