You spot her on the bus
And from this chance sighting
You imagine the torment begins
Initially, the symptoms are mild
Do not interfere with daily activity
Stray thoughts, palpitations
An occasional catch of breath
A facial tweak when in proximity to her
An awkward smile
Then symptoms become more noticeable
Tremors and excessive dry-mouth when she is near
Arousing thoughts breaking in randomly
Involuntary head shaking and eruptive mumbling
Both daytime activity and sleep are affected
Obsessive thought and racing pulse by day
At night the range from tortuous dreams to insomnia
Next comes loss of appetite and mood instability
Walking into doors and stumbling into traffic
Your train of thought derailed at any moment
The onset of accelerating mania
Soon the earth has become stale and unprofitable
Barely able to walk or stand on your own two feet
Navigation becomes impossible
Save for the assistance of trees and street sign poles
The kindly hand of a boy scout or crossing guard
Finally, you reach the most advanced and debilitating stage
Should you be ill-fated to survive so long
Unable to speak except to utter nonsensical jibber-jabber
You hallucinate she is by your side constantly
That you are the sole object of her undivided affection
Bizarre imaginings rule your waking hours
Your dreams are rife with images of a flaming damnation
You watch her press the buzzer and disappear out the bus door
Again you have been saved by not striking up a conversation
Lanning Lee 