Walpurgisnacht (Poetry)

The owl has kept me awake tonight
with his sing-song chant — towhit-towoo
the souls of the dead have taken flight
for the old wives’ tales are proven true

A dog fox barks on high yonder hill
he warns whoever might heed his call
the clump of old pines stands straight and still
and a mouse sits tight in the graveyard wall

No human abroad but the wandering mind
that knows twisting lanes and the overgrown track
imagines the tale — lets each scene unwind
summoned to witness dark time rolling back ...

Purple deep shades slide slow through the gloom
haunt dreams so softly — whisper my name
and who is it stands at the door of my room —
a silhouette caught in its half-open frame ?

The pointed hat glimpsed a mere second before
I blink and it’s gone — leaving a certain smell
ripe with decay and I cannot be sure
I didn’t hear words — some muttering spell

I watch lots of horror — I read Stephen King
yet nothing so frightful it’s kept me awake
but tonight a strangeness infects everything
I’m spooked and anxious for bright dawn to break