final sleep

Van Gogh’s severed ear also haunts this work, which begins in pain and stays in pain until it frames Artaud’s sought-for final sleep in Ivry-sur-Seine, France, in 1948.

Yet as she drifts into her final sleep, having overdosed – accidentally or intentionally, it’s not clear – she cradles an imaginary infant in her arms with a tender joy that implies redemption.

He thought back to that long-ago day behind the couch of his mother’s house—the fear, the flames, the sweet, silent peace of a final sleep—and then he thought of Angel.

“I would love it if dog lovers/owners and friends would join us for a celebration of Walnut…He has had an incredible life and having reached the grand age of 18 is ready for his final sleep. Hope to see you on Saturday.”

Then as I started the car and drove back for my final sleep in Lapland, with the last glimmers of green light still drifting through the sky, the radio began to crackle.