Fall Thunder / Witchy Halloween by Michael Lee Johnson

Fall Thunder

There is power in the thunder tonight, kettledrums.

There is thunder in this power.

The powder blends white lightning

and flour sifters in masks and is tossed around.

Rain plunges on an October night, and dancers

crisscross the night sky in white gowns.

Tumble, turn, swirl the night away, around,

leaves tape-record over, over, pound,

pound, repeat, falling to the ground.

Halloween falls on the children's

knees and imagination.

Kettledrums.

Witchy Halloween

 

Inside this late October 31st night,

this poem turns into a pumpkin.

Animation, something has gone

devilishly wrong with my imagery.

I take the lid off the pumpkin's headlight

and the pink candles inside.

Demons cry, crawl, diverge, fly outside—

escape through the pumpkin's eyes.

I'm mixed in fear with this scary, strange creation.

Outside, quietly tapping Hazel, the witch's

broomstick against my windowpane rattles.

She says, "Nothing seems to rhyme anymore.

Nothing makes sense, but the night is young.

Give me back my magical bag of tricks.

As Robert Frost said:

"But I have promises to keep,  

And miles to go before I sleep."

Michael Lee Johnson lived in Canada for ten years during the Vietnam era. Today, he is a poet in the greater Chicago-land area, IL. He has 354-plus YouTube poetry videos. Michael Lee Johnson is an internationally published poet in 46 countries, a song lyricist with several published poetry books, and a nominee for 7 Pushcart Prize awards and 7 Best of the Net nominations.