Noctiphobia

I wrote this specifically for a contest about phobias. I have learned to live with my fear of the dark but spent many years cowering in fear of the things that go BUMP in the night.

 

Noctiphobia

I listen, certain that I am not alone as
my imagination plays tricks on my mind.

That noise! I listen closely now to be sure;
my mind plays it over again, then rewinds.

The sheets I pull tightly over me but they
provide little comfort from the waning light.

My thoughts start racing endlessly
to the coming of another night.

That noise, I’m certain it’s meant for me --
a spirit from another place.

The dark, each night, has been haunting me;
my heart skips, then it begins to race.

My closed eyes play an endless reel of hell
of the horrors that may just unfold.

My mind toys with the evil that lurks within
a dark night with its stories untold.

So helpless, I lay as still as I can
and pray for dawns early light.

To awaken again to another new day and
have made it unscathed through the night.

Author's Note

I didn't always have a fear of the dark. It seemed to just build and then one night, my loving sis decided to put this sticky, fuzzy toy on the wall next to my bed and when I woke up in the middle of the night...I caught site of it in the moonlight and screamed, thinking it was a huge spider or something that was going to attack me. I was too paralyzed to get out of bed to turn the light on and my sister was sound asleep despite my shrieking so I sat there staring at it to see if it would move. I must have watched that thing all night waiting for daylight so I could see just what it was that was going to eat me if I moved. When I found out what it was, I felt foolish and Tania thought it was the funniest thing in the world. Ever since then, I seem to be more sensitive to not being able to see the things that might go bump in the night and I'm hoping I portrayed this in my Poem. Enjoy!

Reviews

[Damian Alan Gray]

Yeah, I know what you mean. I've been afraid of the dark ever since I was a kid. I'm certain that the shapes that my overactive imagination created out of moonlit silhouetted lumps of clothing, piled in my darkened bedroom, are what first prompted me to write horror stories. Even to this day I feel the need to slide deep under my covers for fear of that Rotting-Living-Dead-Thing, which surely lurks just outside my door.

I liked your poetry. I've read a couple of your pieces, and they seem to hold a playful mood about them. Some poets would say that poesy should be strictly for purposes of the analysis of one's emotions. Poppycock, say I! Good poetry is whatever happens to be on your mind at the time of the writing, and if you dissect and edit it too much then you lose the spirit's intent. Nothing, but nothing, can piss off a muse more than when you, the mere and mortal writer, may have the audacity to edit Her words. So, don't be concerned over what other people think. Not yet, anyway. If you're still a young poet the most important things to do is to take dictation from your muse, and make every attempt not to irritate Her.

[ah]

this is a great write. i really liked how its 2 lines per stanza and the rhymes are great. i have a suggestion. i think it would work better and add strength to the writing if you took out made it on the last line and added survived in their place. i understand how powerful a mind is and can be your own worst enemy and you conveyed that very well.

[Snow White Queen]

Awesome!

[The Archangel Gabriel]

Very nicely penned. Good luck with the contest!

-Gabe

[Candle in the wind]

I sleep with the light on when I am alone. I have similar haunting fears at times. So aptly described!

[Skye Jules]

This one is so awesome! I remember I used to feel that way when I was in the third grade and one of my friends decided to screw with my friends minds and my mind as well. We just had all sorts of crazy hallucinations, and it made me so afraid to sleep with the door closed. And for a time, I had to sleep with a night light when I was in the eigth grade because I was going through a lot of emotional issues and my therapist ended up recommending a night light.

[The Viking]

Good, through your words, I felt the oncoming despair that the character also did as dusk was swallowed into shadow. Very nicely done. It reads easy and the imagery is descriptive enough to convey the correct images.

[SM Davis]

Very nicely written.

[D. Elizabeth]

Lorna, I loved this piece, the thought of that darkness in the night. It's eerily creepy, yet hauntingly captivating. I loved it!. Much respect. - XO D.E.

[Lea Jane]

This is great! I've always been a little afraid of the dark myself, but I another fear that I'll be writing about for Tania's contest. But this piece was really amazing :]

[Dani California]

I do this very thing when I am alone in a house. Very nice poem - you hit on it perfectly and with wonderful creativity and a nice flow :)

Now I know I am not alone with my fear of being alone... ha

Great write!!