Darryl Womack, “Halloween Night”

‘Twas Halloween Night all the children were dressed
As ghosties and ghoulies to scare all the rest.

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They set out for adventure – sweet treats for the taking
Clouds swept past the moon – a night of tricks in the making.

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Dark streets were lighted – Jack O’Lantern’s glowing
Nobody knew that true danger was growing.

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Kids giggled and skipped house to house, door to door
“Trick or Treat” they would shout, rudely asking for more.

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The neighborhood houses were decked out as well,
Graveyards with monsters and demons from Hell.

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The scene was a treat for the imagination,
Until Sam finally snapped and sought retaliation.

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As kids filled their bags up with neighborhood goodies,
Terror lurked in the shadows wearing black pants and a hoodie.

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Sam hated this tradition, greedy kids, noise and laughter,
He’d make people think twice from now on, ever after.

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As the children ran past him, his patience was waning,
He needed to strike – his insanity gaining!

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One house was designed to give kiddies a fright,
The front lawn was a graveyard just for tonight.

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Fake zombies struggled to rise from the ground,
It was one of the best Halloween scenes to be found.

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Danny crept near a place where he shouldn’t have been,
A quick blade ‘cross his throat and he’s part of the scene.

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An old oak spread its limbs in a park down the street,
Fake monsters were hanged there – a cool breeze blew their feet.

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Sandy, dressed as a ghoul, got too close to the dark,
A noose tight ‘round her neck added feet to the park.

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Red strobe lights flashed brightly from the depths of a well,
A bloody, handwritten sign read: “The Gateway To Hell”.

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Away from his friends, Timmy wandered too close,
One little shove – his screams add to the show.

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The horror continued all Halloween night,
Kids disappeared to the left and the right.

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Sam did his handiwork the whole evening through,
Until one child was left who didn’t know what to do.

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He stood under a streetlight, whimp’ring, cold as a bone,
Wond’ring, through sobs, why his friends left him alone.

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Sunrise discovered a most grisly scene,
More murders in one night than there’d ever been.

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What once was tradition became nightmare that year,
No more tricking, no treating, no laughter, no cheer.

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Sam was convicted and locked up for good,
Only one child survived from the whole neighborhood.

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That child is all grown now – he’s not been the same,
Stories say now he plays a most frightening game.

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He wanders the countryside, from town to town,
He hasn’t got friends and he can’t settle down.

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Wherever he visits on Halloween Night,
He pretends he is Sam and gives children a fright.

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Once he finishes playing his Halloween game,
It’s said that the children are never the same.

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He fills neighborhood children with terror and dread,
When all’s said and done the kids wish they were dead.

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So, as you put on your costume with plans to have fun,
Keep looking behind you, be ready to run.

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A madman is lurking ‘round every dark turn,
To teach you a lesson all children should learn.

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Stick together, say thank you and please be polite,
And you just might survive this Halloween Night!