All Hallows Eve

On Halloween we shed our normal selves

We dress as ghosts or pirates, kings or queens

Then frolic with the demons and the elves

And fill our bags with colored jelly beans

But Halloween is more than fun and games

This is the night the dead return to life

The witches’ brew is bubbling on the flames

And Dracula is searching for a wife

The children ring the bell in search of treats

They’re clueless as to what awaits their fate

I fear that werewolves prowl the city streets

Perhaps a ghoul digests the flesh he ate

I think I’d just as soon stay home tonight     

This poem puts me in a state of fright

A Halloween Sonnet

All Hallows’ Eve, so much mystery 

Black cats and witches and objects of dread

Some six thousand years of satanic history 

The Celts, pagan festivals, the Day of the Dead 

Each kid at our school had a homemade costume 

So funny, the boys wearing big sisters’ clothes 

Ghosts and devils took over the playground

And silly small clowns with red paint on their nose 

 The streets were a threatening place in the night

No adults, we children went out on our own 

Just when we thought that we’d conquered our fright

We’d hear down the block a deep death rattle moan 

Few things after twelve match Halloween night 

Disguises, the darkness, the candy, the fright 

All Hallows Eve

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

Tricksters in masks scurry everywhere

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright

A pirate and a banshee wait for the light

A witch casts her spell, they stop to stare

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

Vampires hug shadows, ready to bite

A child screams out, “Bloodsuckers!  Beware!”

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright

A bumblebee clutches his lantern bright

Howls of wolves pervade the dark air

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

A swarm of zombies lurches into sight

Returning to Earth from some dreaded nightmare

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright

Kids carry treats to their porches bright

Greeted by mothers and fathers there

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright