A Halloween Tale

Greetings to all the young Ghoulies looking forward to Halloween day. She draws closer with each passing day. Here is a spooky little rhyme to get you ready...enter if you dare.

A Halloween Tale 

By

Carlos Lorenzo Estrada 

I'm in shadows of a dark dreary room

a tulpa of despair and frightful doom.

What darkly tale shall I whisper to thee

Beyond candlelight; a voice you can't see

Despair is the journey I'll take you upon

Whispered by daemons in grisly foul song

A desolate road you'll never forget 

Covered in mist with monsters of threat 

There by the window red eyes do stare

Searching for children to taunt and to scare

Feel the ends of my boney fingertips 

Brushing against the softness of lips

Come with me to nightmarish abode

In dreams so aphotic and endless a road

Let us walk among gnarled and twisted of trees

Painted in violet with crimson dead leaves 

Hear the banshee's mournful sad cries

Withering souls in terror filled eyes

Hoot of an owl and screech of a bat

Growl of an angry hungry black cat

There by the graveyard I'll stand and I'll wait

Beckon you forward toward hellish cursed gate 

Give up on all hope; you'll find none of it here

For we feed upon fright, anguish, and fear 

Give up on all hope to ever find home

You belong to the night with us all alone 

And when all that is left is empty and frail 

Take heed and remember this Halloween tale.

Author's Note

My wonderous muse Cate is counting the days down till that spooky day appears. When I showed her my costume I'm planning on wearing, which is only a pink thong with a long elephant nose drapped down, she told me I was wearing it backwards. Haha on her I meant to do that.

Reviews

[Yellow Butterfly]

I really liked this hauntingly grizzly tale of frightful delights. It reads like a script from an anthology movie of which you have woven together descriptive words to create a great poem to add to the theme that is Halloween.

Love your work Carlos and loved this piece.

YB

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you YB I really appreciate it. I really wanted to have that crypt keeper vibe to this. You totally picked up on that. Growing up as a tales of the crypt fan one can definitely feel a bit of influence in this work. As well as my admiration for Poe and Lovecraft. Keeping it simple and to the point also helped. Thank you again for the kind words and as a fan of your poetry as well I appreciate it.

[Yellow Butterfly]

You are most welcome Carlos and I too have found myself drawn to your exceptional writing style here at the cafe…it’s an honour to review and to read your work.

Here in the UK I loved watching something similar …Tales of the Unexpected…a more 20th century Morden day twist to the old school horrors of the yesteryears. They were scary back then as a youngster to watch but i do enjoy watching the repeats now.

Have a great day…

YB

[Shelley Warner]

LOL, we'll all take heed. Good writing.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you Shelley for your sweet comment. I hope you have an enjoyable lightly spooky Halloween night with friends and family. It's one of the fun best night's of the year.

[Shelley Warner]

Yes, my grandkids are having a fun day. Hope you have fun too.

[barleygirl]

Best aspects: (1) your childlike sense of wonder & excitement as you try to pump up the anticipation at the start . . . (2) your rhyme & rhythm is well-crafted . . . (3) you use much more imagery than usual here, lots of sensory writing, more than cerebral (which can be your "go to"). Strong contribution to the raging Halloween competitiveness going on all over this website, which I'm very much enjoying. Have a fun Halloween weekend (((HUGS)))

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you kindly Margie for the comment. When I first wrote this 2 weeks back the first lines written were actually the last two sentences. So I basically worked backwards composing the rest. It was so fun like piecing a puzzle together. I wrote this in tandem with my next poem called Meoldy in Twilight. Which to be honest is my favorite between the two because of its complex themes. But this one was more fun because it made me feel like a child again. Thank you so much for your thoughts as well as the incredible artful poetry you share with the community. I really do love reading your work as a fan.

[barleygirl]

I'm honored (((HUGS)))

[John Prophet]

Great write, this made me realize how all that we see and do as a civilization is reflective of what’s inside us all!. 👍🏼

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you John for your thoughts on this poem. You are absolutely correct in that comment my friend. A very eerie yet truthful statement indeed. Thank you so much I really appreciate it.

[Gee]

Very well written Carlos, cannot beat decent rhyming verse

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you Gee for the kind comment I really appreciate it. I wanted to to write something for Halloween because it's actually one of my favorite days of the year.

[Einstein Noodle]

spooky scary Carlos .. a top notch Halloween poem says i! mighty fine rhyming and imaging .. most definitely chills my heart with fear :) in couplet 11 maybe something other than "awaits" .. maybe sate .. or .. doomsday gate .. great job of mixing real and imagination .. for me it's what makes it really scary .. like Poe's stuff .. nice job!
E.
ps. no comment on the costume .. i'm sure the contrast between reality and an elephants nose added to her chuckles :))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))) bruuuuuuuaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahahaha! ;)

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Omg EN after your thoughts on this I like the idea of gate and changing doom to hellish. So it reads hellish gate. Adds more dread to the piece. Thank you so much for the advice. I think that addition will add more spooky into the piece.

[Einstein Noodle]

its great to be here ain't it!? ...right here at the Cafe' ... peace and joy! :)

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

it truly is my friend. This community is absolutely amazing and so encouraging as well. It makes me want to write. That to me states just how vital and important the Cafe is for all writers. Both new and old. We all share this common love of writing and this community has so many talented artists here willing to listen, encourage, and help. As well as inspire with their own art. I always pay it forward to the newest writers because the same kindness was given to me. It truly feels like home being a part of this amazing community.

[Einstein Noodle]

i couldn't be more in agreement ..you said it well my friend.

[.]

I really enjoyed your spooky descriptions....it will definitely enhance the mood of the day and your costume I feel can enhance that mood further.I hope you will enjoy the halloween day whole heartedly!

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you so much for your thoughts my friend I truly appreciate it. I hope you have a wonderful Halloween day as well. It is my favorite time of year and I'm so looking forward to having a nice one soon. Thank you again.

[John the Baptist]

A pink thong with an elephant nose appended? Talk about male fantasies. Anyway, the poem is prime halloween fare, although I don't recommend reading it if you're depressed or have a hangover. By the way, what is a tulpa?

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you John for the kind words. I really appreciate it. A tulpa is a mystical object or being creating through spiritual means or mental powers. Through sheer will or belief it is believed one can create a physical spiritual incarnation of a spirit or diety. It is an interesting concept though I myself am not one to place much stock on such things. If it were possible my muse would actually be living right now haha. Though she looks like Cate Blanchett in my mind she is more like a Betty Davis in personality. Halloween is my favorite time of year and I'm glad I was able to write something moderately interesting for the occasion. Thank you so much again for sharing your thoughts on this poem.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Good Grief...has Poe been reincarnated?

This is so him...and so spooky....Halloween is my favorite holiday...

you made it even better with this tale.
j.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you J you are too kind my friend I truly appreciate it. If I was even a 10th rate Poe I would consider myself lucky and blessed because he was a genius writer with such a macabre creativity that still haunts many to this day. The day holds a special meaning to my heart because truth be told my mother went into labor on Halloween day. As she tell it I was a very difficult birth that almost killed her. I was half way out on Halloween but was so afraid of the world I tried to crawl back in haha. Now that is a tale for another day. Thank you J your encouraging words mean so much as does your friendship.

[KM]

I thought it was really cute and fun. Halloween is also my favorite holiday and you captured the fun and eariness of the holiday.

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

Thank you KM for your comment. Halloween is my absolutely favorite day of the year. I love the costumes and plus the fall colors. The candy is nice too. I hope you have a wonderful spooky day.