The Night

The soft pale moonlight sweeps in through the window,

Washing my room in its luminescent glow,

I lay sleeping all comfy in my bed,

With wonderful dreams playing out in my head,

The sound of my dog barking awakens me,

So I get to my feet and stumble to the window to see,

A gentle breeze is blowing making the treetops sway,

It's a beautiful night to follow a great day,

The dew on the grass is glistening brightly in the night,

Like diamonds on the lawn it is a beautiful sight,

Suddenly there's movement by the trees that catches my eye,

A dark figure all hunched over comes creeping by,

Never before have I seen such a thing,

Is that a hump on it's back or maybe a wing?

What is this horrible sight,

This thing out there lurking in the night,

It has horns on its head and hooves like a goat,

My tongue swells up and fills my throat,

Terror creeps into my heart as I stand here frozen,

Unable to take my eyes off the thing with hooves that are cloven,

His bright red eyes peer up into mine,

And sends shivers racing down my spine,

What is this terrible disgusting thing out on the lawn,,

Standing there beckoning me with one long sharp claw,

His grin is evil and full of razor sharp teeth,

I snatch back my covers and jump underneath,

Pulling them over my head I lay perfectly still,

I can hear it breathing, it's right outside my window sill,

A low and guttural sound comes from the window not quite a growl,

What is this unthinkable thing I have caught on the prowl,

Then I hear scratching on the glass, it begins to get faster,

I hold my breath and close my eyes awaiting disaster,

Then the scratching stops, the room gets deathly quiet,

I try to tell myself it's gone, but my mind won't buy it,

Finally I get the courage to peek out from under the sheet,

Slowly I look toward the window prepared to retreat,

A sense of relief washes over me, because it isn't there,

All I see are the trees swaying in the cool night air,

I relax, exhale and my body begins to shake,

Did I really see that thing or had I made a mistake,

Just when I started to think it was only a dream, nothing more,

I turn and look, it's standing at my door.