Spiritus Vertiginis

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SPIRITUS VERTIGINIS


If everything is spinning, lay down. 

Give up. Whether it’s you or the ground, 


stumbling forward is a sure way to hit your head

on a corner or even tumble overboard. 


Lay still and quiet until you feel warm hands

on either side of your face, holding your head


steady, a voice telling you to relax your neck

so they can maneuver the crystal back


into the vacant space. This is what the doctor

tells you, speaking in the quiet tenor 


of someone who knows for certain: 

something solid must enter the hollow organ.


Accept the word, and don’t try to reason

why—you’ll only start to spin again.


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