Facing Our Fears

Shadows all around us

Creeping in the night

Herding us together

Strings attached-our fright

Cold wind blows-we shiver

Fearing the tug of one

Shadows of the moment

They have stopped the sun

Still we huddle closer

As the shadows feast

Warmer, wishing warmer

As we fear the beast

When the shadows find you

For they will, my dear

The best thing you should learn

Is how to face your fear

Mystery Chest

A simple chest with no design
Strongly cut on basic line
Painted, finished, simply nice
But yet a lock will there suffice

What may hide within this box?
Not many have a need of locks.
What secrets wait within to find?
Yet whose they be might not be kind

Secrets borne, where stands the key?
And when it's found, maybe we'll see
An owner of the secret box
Who cared enough for simple locks.

But what's inside might dare to know
Things of which no faces show.
Hidden love, maybe a crime
It might hold disgusting slime

No one knows what's in this chest
But some will look with fervent zest
To find what may be anything
Unknown to all, thus secrets bring

Should the contents stay unknown?
Truth might hurt when it is shown
The age of truth is yet unfound
Discovery might change the sound

No one knows what truths are there
So I think I'll make it fair
And leave the chest alone for now
For contents truth might hurt, but how?

Is it worth the risk to see?
I do not know, and soon maybe
I will not have this fear of truth
Courage unspent while in my youth

Background Story:
As I sat on my bed, staring at my jewelry chest, I started to wonder at the simple lock there. I am forever grateful that for a time, my jewelry chest had a simple lock that prevented searching hands, but now I look back at my jewelry chest and think about this poem. If it was an outsider, it could be anything in that chest. It could be old, covered in dust, with secrets inside that no one should know. It could be just the jewelry that there actually is. Looking at the various possibilities in my head, I had to write, so write I did!

Tears

Tears are spouting from everywhere
Make up smearing and more to share
Just all from this simple thing
From which tears are sure to bring

Torrents of rain fall from my eyes
I truly wish that tears had lies
For if they did maybe others won't see
When I'm sad or otherwise be

For tears will show without a doubt
That something's wrong, and something's about
So everyone worries, and asks, "what's wrong?"
But I won't tell, for feelings are yet strong

I'm overwhelmed, not sure what to do
Pain is hurting through and through
Heart is sore, and I am hurt
I truly feel as low as dirt

I have been hurt, and everyone can see
Still I wish it would not be
Such a hurt to cause such tears
They would reveal all my fears

Fears hidden down deep inside
Though these tears are hard to hide
When my tears give them away
I won't know just what to say

Background story:
After a long week with multiple instances of crying, I felt bad about worrying my friends about what was going on with me. I had simply been having a bad week, yet it had been enough to make me shed a lot of tears. This bad week helped me to realize that sometimes, when you see someone who has obviously been crying, they can't tell you what is wrong. Sometimes, memories are too recent to express.

Afraid of the Dark

Dark and oppressive in every way
Everyone is talking with nothing to say
Huddling close for warmth or for light
Both are hard to come by in such a dark night

Everywhere around us are shadows creeping around
They will ever be there when night is to be found
Startling shapes and scary images frighten everyone
This is what they feed on, and what they find as fun

Still they're looming nearer, and no one knows just why
Why they enjoy our fear and every little cry
Fear will ever be their call-unknown they ever be
For shadows still will hide themselves so none can truly see

Huddling still, and fearfully, we're clustered in a ball
Unknown shadows all around-that fear is still their call
Formless shapes of anything-what shadows truly are
They carry all the things we fear, and nothing is too far

So every little scary thought is theirs to simply command
They will drive the buckling knees to ground with just one hand
Fears as this do drive us there, gasping at the ground
Trying to somehow steady the fear that they have found

Background:
At my house, we had a power outage, and I could not see a thing. The power outage lasted beyond when I had finally fallen asleep. I am and have been since my early childhood afraid of the dark. This night was totally terrifying to me, because there was no light, anywhere. There were candles, of course, but their light was quite dim. I could not see much else besides the faint light of candles, and the dim light of my cell phone. I was reduced to tears as I was so terrified being in the dark, with no obvious light. Just before I went to sleep, I wrote this poem as a text on my cell phone, and immediately felt well enough to fall asleep.