It is a dark and stormy night.
I’m thinking I can sleep through this!
The moon flirts in and out of the clouds.
Be dark or be light – just be still I mutter!
The coyotes howl and moan restless.
Praying the dogs don’t start to answer back!
The owls call to one another.
They mate for life – sounds like nagging!
It’s cold enough to hear the house creak.
Is that a footstep? Was that a cough?
The dogs don’t bark, Don’t stir.
Am I hearing things? Can this be?
I roll over, punching the pillow.
The sound of silence echoes around me.
Drifting off, one foot out of the covers.
So you can escape if the clowns come out.
I hear a thump. A bump. A grunt.
And silence again. Nothing. Hmmmm…
Again. Thump. Bump. Grunt. Thump. Bump.
Grunt! Of course! Grunt. He’s hungry.
Dogs stay silent, under a sleep spell.
I lay still, faking sleep, maybe he won’t come in.
I hear dragging noises. Chrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Pulling covers tighter around my ears.
Closer. Thump. Bump. Grunt.
Mama. It whispers. Lips wet to my ear.
Caught! Caught!
What babe? Are you scared?
Shaking. Quivering. Laughing?
Nothing scares me, I have a tough Mama!
Covers pull back, and dogs tails wag.
Okay let’s get some sleep on this
Dark and stormy night.
I’m tending bar at dVerse tonight and we are having some fun with ghouls, haunts and spooks. I saw a shirt one time of a non-morning person (like me) greeting a monster at her door, “You don’t scare me, I have kids!” and I laughed. I have a sound sleeping hubby and a night wandering son. If the dogs don’t fuss I’m good. They are my early warning system – except for sounds on the TV that sound like a door bell. WHY do they BARK at them? We don’t even have one! 🙂
Find a haunt, have some fun! Join us at dVerse!
Sunflower Poetry 
Grace said,
October 27, 2013 at 1:03 am
Liking the to & fro conversations here shanyn ~ Hope you were able to get some sleep after all ~ Did you say you have a night wandering son? My second boy used to sleepwalk when he was young ~ Luckily he never fell or hurt himself ~
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 1:32 am
Glad you enjoyed it! Yes I did get some sleep. My husband can sleep through anything, me, I have Mom ears! He doesn’t sleep walk (thankfully!) but when he starts to think about something it will wake him up and he wanders. 🙂 Glad your son was okay with sleepwalking!
brian miller said,
October 27, 2013 at 1:34 am
ha. i am glad we are beyond the scared at night spell..its cute, but the bed can get pretty crowded on those dark and stormy nights as well….love the focus on sound too…as when you are afraid sound def seems amplified….
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 1:41 am
It does get crowded! I need a king size bed for when hubby, son and two dogs try to share! 🙂
When you are a bit scared all sounds have a sinister tone – even innocent ones! 🙂
Glad you enjoyed it.
lynndiane said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:01 am
Enjoyed this one with my son…scrolling line by line in dread 😀
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:02 am
That is totally cool, thanks for sharing that! 🙂
Kathryn Dyche Dechairo said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:28 am
Oh those dark and stormy nights are great for feeding fears and heightening our senses.
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:35 am
They truly are, and so often have a benign or even humorous cause! Thanks for coming by.
Ginny Karpinski Brannan said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:28 am
Great take on things that go bump in the night! Enjoyed this immensely, including your little “haunter!”
Especially liked:
“Drifting off, one foot out of the covers.
So you can escape if the clowns come out.”
Shades of every Stephen King book I ever read, especially “It!” For some reason his books can scare the bejeepers out of me, but they never translate well into movies. Anyways, thanks for bringing up the clowns. Sweet dreams tonight, eh?!! *smiles*
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:35 am
Sleep well, glad I’m not the only one still scarred by It, and other horror clowns (Gacey anyone?)…and I’m so pleased you enjoyed this! 🙂
kkkkaty1 said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:49 am
Nice work, Shanyn….thanks for the smiles, remembering..and now even the grandkids are getting too older, so this rarely happens now 😉
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 2:58 am
Glad to bring back some good memories! 🙂
anmol(alias HA) said,
October 27, 2013 at 5:14 am
A brilliant set up… the progression was quite mysterious. A lovely write! Sweet and delightful. 🙂
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:32 pm
Thank you so much!
claudia said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:39 am
ah smiles…brought back some memories…our bed is just 1,60 wide…so it gets crowded easily with three kids… sometimes sad that those times are over…smiles…
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:33 pm
Like the song says, you’re gonna miss this when it’s gone. I know I’ll miss those days! Glad you had some good memories with this.
aprille said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:50 am
You could get one of those machines that react to intruders and sound like a dog barking. We have the geese nextdoor – trouble is they squawk at everything 🙂
Nice outing this week, Shanyn [with or without an -s-?]
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:34 pm
Geese – they would be as loud as our dogs when they hear a doorbell! 🙂 Glad you liked this. (Shanyn, the second S is for my last name which starts with an S)
Andra Negroiu said,
October 27, 2013 at 8:27 am
NIcely done 🙂 I’m actually a heavy sleeper most of the time, but when I’m nervous or anxious, any little noise can keep me up half the night. Good thing my fiancee is cuddly enough to keep the “terror” at bay :)))
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:32 pm
Cuddly is very helpful! I’m the light sleeper in the house, Mama ears I guess. Glad you came by.
freyathewriter said,
October 27, 2013 at 8:53 am
Oh yes, the back and forth in this poem, interweaving thoughts, is a great device! Thank you, bartender!
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:31 pm
And thank you for joining in, it’s been great fun!
kaykuala said,
October 27, 2013 at 11:03 am
The back and forth progression creates a lively feel of movements. It makes the poem move and appear alive. Great way of presentation Shanyn!
Hank
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:31 pm
Thanks Hank! 🙂 I appreciate that.
Anders Vaksinius said,
October 27, 2013 at 11:08 am
*smile* Mom is greater than Superman! And leadership, or being in power, really constitutes a being. Nice theme!
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:31 pm
Awww thanks!
Björn Rudberg (brudberg) said,
October 27, 2013 at 11:18 am
Oh you have to stay strong.. never be scared in front of your chilren.. love the monologue here..
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:31 pm
Thanks! 🙂 Being brave in front of them is so important! 🙂 But also teaching them what fear can tell us is important too!
Glad you enjoyed this!
Myrna said,
October 27, 2013 at 3:12 pm
This is so cute. It’s true those little monsters cannot be ignored, especially by their super-brave Mama.
shanyns said,
October 27, 2013 at 7:30 pm
🙂 no they can’t!
Bryan Ens said,
October 27, 2013 at 9:29 pm
Love this. I had no idea where you were going ’til the end.
shanyns said,
October 28, 2013 at 1:06 am
Totally worked! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed it.
Susan Chast said,
October 28, 2013 at 1:15 pm
Fine form for a realistic stream of consciousness as Halloween nears or any time of year. Wonderful. If the kids only knew! This is a great prompt. Thanks.
shanyns said,
October 28, 2013 at 2:32 pm
Thanks! 🙂 So glad you enjoyed it.
atrm61 said,
October 28, 2013 at 6:34 pm
Ha!ha!This is so sweetly scary-loved the cute end 🙂
charliezero1.wordpress.com said,
October 28, 2013 at 10:42 pm
What a great poem to start off a Halloween poem fest. I love your writing style and everything you do. Amazing! 🙂
shanyns said,
October 29, 2013 at 2:42 pm
Awww thank you so much! You just made me smile!
charliezero1.wordpress.com said,
October 29, 2013 at 4:50 pm
🙂 You are so welcome….
Say, when you get a chance check out my new blog poem. 🙂 It will trip you out.
Madeleine Begun Kane said,
October 29, 2013 at 7:28 am
Clever and well done!
shanyns said,
October 29, 2013 at 2:41 pm
Thank you! 🙂