Once Upon A Midnight Dreary 🦇😱

“Once Upon A Midnight Dreary”

A lone banshee shrieked in the distance,
as the hand of death tapped at my door.
I boldly yielded to circumstance,
and grabbed my axe to settle the score.

The axe and I were familiar friends--
sharpened, ready to be used again.
Ever waiting to help make amends
for dire acts of malevolent sin.

‘Twas an ill-omened midnight dreary
with a crescent moon then hanging low.
I, a soul, neither weak, nor weary
resolved to swing a swift, deadly blow.

Howling, gripping was spine chilling gale.
Dense mist swirled, chilling me to the core.
Guilty one searched for to no avail--
victim ripped from life for evermore.

The seminal scream led me onward.
Axe in tow, there was no turning back.
Your end by my hand the sole reward
for deviant, malicious attack.

Beast cowers, shrouded by aura’s force.
Found! I’ve long waited for this moment.
I raised my honed axe without remorse,
and delivered life’s final judgment!

Sheila Bowyer Kline
Inspired by Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven”