Yume no seirei

As darkening shadows dim reality

Weaving the cobwebs of dreams into imagination

On my pallet, I close the windows to mortality

And drift into another dimension

A muted rustling, from corn husks, that fill my tick

Against my skin, a bulge slithers

Conjuring images of serpents, tongues that flick

Their awakening, to my heat.... instict shivers

Above me, bat wings fluttering, then silence

On my pillow a simultaneous plop

To my cheek, tiny footsteps threaten violence

A shudder, vomitus reflexive leap.... I stop

Frozen in half dream, my eyelids sewn shut

All muscles paralyzed, unable to move

I listen for my infant close by in the hut

It's rythmic breathing so soft and smooth

Strong grows the smell of musty mold

Turning to the odor of rotting flesh

A spider is nigh, the smell foretold

Hair stands on end, skin prickles afresh

At eyes stitched, I pick and pull

Breaking the threads of slumber

In the doorway with darkness full

Through bleary vision a silouette of umber

Two black holes where eyes should be

Dark, bloody tears flowing

Run to the maw of this banshee

With splintered teeth glowing

All fades to black, quiet and serene

In the morning's light of sky

Two knotholes where the eyes were seen

I shudder with relief, and sigh

But on pillow arachnid debris

From the window escapes a bat

Two puncture marks on my cheek there be

From the tick's tear, a viper's habitate

To the crib my eyes now flee

My baby.... still asleep on the mat

Author's Note

Based on a true experience. I, like Thoreau, love nature and choose to spend a good deal of my time in a rural area, in a small rustic cabin, without screens or glass windows, only wooden shutters. Here I can hear the frogs, cicadas and night birds. The corn husk mattress attracted a family of rats and unbeknowst to me snakes. I later found I had been sleeping on a family of poisonous vipers. Here there is one type of spider that when threatened has a pungent odor that at times smells like rotten meat. Oh yes a vampire bat did suck my blood as I slept, as witnessed by one of my children and the marks it left. I guess that makes me a vampire.
Yume no seirei is a mysterious yokai in Japanese mythology believed to cause nightmares

Reviews

[John the Baptist]

An excellent job of building suspense steadily here. The reader can feel the speaker's terror as the tale builds to its climax and is relieved to find it was just a dream. The author's note lends a sobering note of authenticity to the story. Nice work, but stay away from those cabins, Thoreau be damned.

[Soren]

Thank you John for the read and comments. Yes part dream and part true, concocted out of the two.

[Chris Shaw]

Now this was truly nightmarish in content to read Soren. Dark and creepy. I am no friend of spiders. Your author notes gave some very interesting background information. I like the natural environment but I don’t think I would be brave enough to expose myself to the type of experiences you have had :) Bats, snakes and spiders all give me the creeps. Your poem was certainly atmospheric and laden with imagery of the kind I would prefer not to meet. Conveyed so well and enjoyed with it.

[Soren]

Thank you Chris for taking your time to read this write and for your kind comments. I guess at my age my love for nature has overcome the fears and would rather deal with earths creatures than sleep amidst the sound of traffic.

[Chris Shaw]

You may have a point there :)