The Ghost Poem by Gita Ashok

This is my real-life experience one night in the winter of 1992 when I was all alone in my house in Shrewsbury, MA.

Darkness, darkness all around,
But coming through the
window blinds…
a small glimmer of light
casting cruel shadows inside.

I hear a strange noise
in the dead of night.
Does it come from the basement?
Or is it from outside?
Could it be a burglar?

I’m far too brave to think
it could be a ghost.
But are ghosts real?
Or do they just lurk
in the dark recesses of my mind?

I hear the noise again.
This time loud and clear.
And when I point my flashight outside
What do I see?
Footsteps… footsteps on the untrodden snow.

Now I panic…
Should I shout?
Should I scream?
Or just stay calm
And try to sleep?

Will I live?
Will I die?
Is there some place
where I can hide?
Or better still
Should I call 911?

But what if the 911 team
is afraid of the ghost?
Who will rescue me
from the ghost then?

I switch on all the lights
and my radio, too
to scare away the burglar
Or the ghost and…
drift peacefully into slumberland soon.

Geeta Ashok
Thursday, May 13,2010
5: 00 pm.