Coloring smiling faces donned with faux missing teeth,

and waxing poetic lip schtick adorned with moustaches

Swarthy, spooky, scary carved
pumpkin faces thickly materialized

out of thin air

as Halloween holiday loomed near

yes... just an innocently naive fickle kid,

who easily did scare,

attended Henry Kline
for 'most every year

elementary grade school

no matter I abided every rule

and colored within every line
turquoise blue favorite jewel

blackening every other tooth

affixing moustache, sideburns,
and beard upon every face kooky rule.

Nor, never stepped on sidewalk crack
to break mother's back

wonder who believes
such poppycock alas and alack

I haint superstitious

nonetheless steer clear of any black

cat, nor walking under any ladder,

especially on Friday thirteenth.

Fear made ordinarily wavy hair
poker straight stand on end

not a muscle I would bend

unfamiliar sounds, smells, and sights

tingling sensation along small hairs
spine - shiver me timbers would send

courtesy paranormal phenomena

this then lad could not comprehend.

To this day, no ghost of chance

finds your truly daring to partake of seance

essentially scaredy cat soiling mine
spongebob squarepants

skittish regarding supernatural realm

best play with Lincoln logs or tinker toys.

Dog bless those who search out
eerie sound and/or sight

or reed macabre genre
upon dark and stormy night

kudos to those talented
gifted, blessed... to write

blood screaming horror
stories, where adrenaline
spurs one to take flight

unwittingly, unquestionably,

unknowingly, unforgettably... right
into path of haunting spectre badlands

housing ghouls, ghouls, sprite

full hobgoblins spellbinding sight

lurk dark shadows at edge of night
shapeshifting costumed masquerade
zealously, thrillingly, blindly
looming larger in height
lumbering, lingering right

before me scenting how afraid...
desperado whose becomes white
as an albino - blood sucking vampire
sharp as razor fangs bared ready to bite

into tender warm succulent flesh

i.e. cannibal's delight,

yet try as I might

feeble literary effort ne'er achieved

to concoct witch's brew where fright

induces blood curdling scream,

thus much prefer to pen lame

lines, where skeletons make no bones
red dully underpaid gig employees game

to pocket chump change
with absolute zero intent to maim,

thus unlikely to devour thyself
or provide selfie before asking name

of groveling, mumbling, sniveling... alien,
a Dylanesque rolling stone

harkening from outer
limits of twilight zone

accursed series of unfortunate events

spirited as token "scapegoat"
penniless and unable to phone

home, a stranded extraterrestrial,

whose familiar turf grown
dragons holed in their dungeons.