Day 23 of NAPOWRIMO. Sanaa’s prompt is to write a ghost story or a story that calls to darkness. It is open link day at Toads but I am following the prompts for the 30 in 30.
The Dark Place
…”when the sun hides its face for years at a time, and little children
are born and live and die all in darkness while the direwolves grow gaunt and
hungry, and the white walkers move through the woods” George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
in the woods across the road there is a corner –
dark amidst the brightness of green
and tree filtered light.
the corner is in the northwest quadrant
and in that space is a small stone, old
and covered with moss beginning to crumble.
on the stone is Rest in Peace and it points
to the west – not the east.
the people who buried this person
hoped he would not rise again.
the corner is dark, even at high noon –
heavy dead vines, like calcified snakes
strangle the life out of the two trees
in that corner, no green growth,
no animal life, even the fallen leaves
blow away in the wind leaving the hard earth
bare. I don’t know who is buried there.
I just know I walk past
the place quickly, with my fingers crossed,
and my head down.
The darkness calls out to me
but I dare not heed.
I dare not heed.
