Darkness

A short rhyming bedtime story, written easy to read, for children.

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Once, there was a happy girl,

Who’d dream and dance all day.

She loved to chat with all her friends,

and all the games they’d play.

 

But most of all, she loved to draw

and share her art, not shy.

And she was drawing when she saw

The black dot in the sky.

 

At first, it seemed a tiny thing,

soon hidden by a cloud.

But when she looked a second time,

she shouted, “Hey!”, out loud.

 

The dot had grown by quite a bit,

and kept on as she stared.

It grew so fast, she couldn’t sit.

She ran inside, so scared.

 

She shouted, “Daddy, where are you?”,

and found him in his room.

She dragged him to the window,

where they shared the view of doom.

 

The world outside was wiped away,

all disappeared and gone.

The blackness that consumed the day

was creeping up the lawn.

 

So, Daddy shut the curtains,

and he turned on every light,

but soon that darkness was inside

to take away their sight,

 

and cover every sound,

so all the world made not a peep.

And, soon that happy girl had found

that it was time to sleep.

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End

 

 

Author's Note

Please let me know what you think.

Reviews

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

So very dark and I enjoyed it. You have such a complex mind my friend that I have no doubt it is constantly filled with many thoughts of art yet to be written. As good a poet as you are you shouldn't go too long without writing at least something each day or so. I just know there is a huge treasure chest of unwritten poetry in that mind of yours. You should be writing more because just like this poem and your other works it's proof your a writer. As an eternal optimist I hope a flood of ideas rains down on you so we can get more new art out of you.

[mattavelli]

Thanks for reading and the encouragement, Carlos! :)
I post poems when I feel like it; which isn't that often, but I dont feel a rush to do it. The pleasure that I get out of writing a poem, comes from sculpting thoughts into patterns. I enjoy the puzzle of it. But, its not a thing I feel like doing every day. Or, maybe the time between my postings is simple a drawn out pause for dramatic effect. Haha

[Carlos Lorenzo Estrada]

I get it my friend and respect your answer. As a fan of your work I simply wish to see more current art of yours. But that is just a bit of selfishness on my part. Art shouldn't be forced or rushed. Thank you again Matt.

[Sami Khalil]

I felt a marvelous story about black holes and how they stuck you in to another world or realm. Very clever and creative dear poet. You are on the way to stardom.

[mattavelli]

Thanks for reading, Sami! :)

[Sami Khalil]

You are welcome sir.

[Pete]

captivating and clever. never saw that ending coming - was floored. ah, the innocence of children. good stuff m. ... :)

[mattavelli]

Thanks for reading, Pete! :)

[L.E.Osborne]

I loved this so much! It reminded me of a grimm's fairy story but in poetry form, showing a darker aspect to childhood innocence. Brill! x

[mattavelli]

Thanks for reading, L! :)
I had an idea to put together a book of these shorts, and title it Dreadtime Stories, but I googled it and somebody used that name for a movie. I can't draw very well anyway. Haha

[L.E.Osborne]

Aw that was a good idea, still even if you gave it a different name, I'd buy it! And I know a few people who are great artists if you even decide to do it! x

[barleygirl]

Like magically getting rain in California when it's been bone-dry this entire past year, I feel equally elated to see you posting your poetry & reviewing again at the cafe. You are a beloved person here & it's fun to see everyone happy to see you here again! This poem reminds me of a concert DVD I have of Arlo Guthrie where he goes on one of his famous rambling monologues to rant about how everything is so safe & buttoned up for kids these days . . . what happened to bedtime stories that used to scare the s**t out of a kid? Thank you for bringing us back to what we used to know as normality *wink! wink!* (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[mattavelli]

Thanks for reading, Barleygirl! :)
You're too sweet. It feels good to be beloved. Haha

[johnnyqueer]

Makes me think of a perspective piece from the movie melonchalia.
It's a quick story that brings you in, and makes you think about how you would react to that situation.
Very nice

[mattavelli]

Thanks for reading, Johnny! :)

[jacob erin-cilberto]

This reminds me of the Bugs Bunny cartoons we watched as kids. There was slapstick that was funny to us then, but as we grew older we found a different kind of humor in those cartoons...a very wise, tongue-in-cheek kind of humor for adults.
this poem is similar in that kids could take it as just having some kind of nightmare, and then having the parent help them to get to sleep.
But for the adult in me, I see the pandemic, the brutality, the anger in today's world and how it is blocking out the sunshine that used to be in our lives...like a long hard eclipse.

I really like this piece, Matt.
j.

[mattavelli]

Thanks for reading and your thoughts, Jacob! :)