A Gothic Poem

By Margaux Allard

The crisp October wind pulled at her hair as she walked
along the dark and lonely street.
The sound of dead and fallen leaves crunched loud beneath her feet.
A mournful wind howled like banshees through power lines as she passed by.
She told herself, I’m not afraid, but knew this was a lie.
Ghost like clouds danced silent before the harvest moon.
Only three more blocks to go and I will be home soon.
Quiet, what was that, did she hear a creeping sound?
She stopped and held her breath as she took a look around.
Her nerves were on edge as her imagination ran wild.
She said, stop this at once, you are behaving like a frightened child!
Suddenly, before her a screeching creature did appear.
It was a giant black cat with a nick in its left ear!
The cat arched it’s back with eyes glowing bright.
Then with a loud hiss disappeared into the cold dark night!
Under dappled moonlight what did guide her way
but a cold and lonely sidewalk that glowed a tombstone gray.


Oh no, her worst nightmare it was coming true!
You had better pick up your pace girl there is someone following you!
My house is only one block away she thought as she picked up her pace.
With a cold and trembling hand she wiped the tears away from her face.
She new without a doubt that she could hear footsteps not far behind.
As a million nightmare images ran through her numb and frightened mind.
There it was shining like a beacon in the cold and lonely night.
The porch light of her warm safe home was well with in her sight!
As her fear got the best of her she ran to her front door.
With cold and fumbling fingers she dropped her keys on to the floor.
Oh how the terror gripped her very soul when she heard that familiar sound.
It was the steady beat of the strangers footsteps
moving towards her on the ground!
At last the door flew open her trembling body fell inside.
She slammed it shut behind her and quickly found a place to hide.
Peering from her window through curtains made of lace.
There before her stood something that drained the color from her face.
On her front porch was a jack-o-lantern the biggest she had seen.
With it’s eyes glowing deep and red it was hard not to scream.
So on this dark and windy night she new it was not a dream.
For the stranger who followed her home that night was the spirit of Halloween!

When I was a young child I usually slept with my grandma Christina. I used to like singing to her and she would tell me spooky stories. After telling me a few stories grandma would get tired and wanted to sleep. All the stories would make me excited and I would giggle and move around and make too much noise so she would say, “Shhhhh, I hear the chee chee coming! (chee chee was her word for the boogieman) It’s late and you have to go to sleep now so he will go away!” I would cuddle up against her and close my eyes real tight. As I drifted off to sleep, did I actually hear something or was it just my over active imagination? Grandma Christina told me many spooky stories but there was one in particular that was my favorite and I wanted her to tell me this one often. I don’t remember if the story had an actual title but I will call it ‘The Dancing Skeleton’.

Once upon a time there was an Indian brave who had to travel to a neighboring encampment to be with his family. It would take many days to get there so he brought along a raw hide bag fill with bundles of pemmican.( Pemmican is a mixture of dried meat and choke cherries)

The first day of his journey went well he had traveled a great distance and was starting to get tired. By the time he came upon a small clearing in a densely wooded area beside a bubbling mountain stream the lazy red sun was hanging low over the horizon. He thought to himself, this will be a nice spot to set up camp for the night. He tethered his horse to a tree in a grassy area by the stream and started a fire and prepared his sleeping area. By the time his camp was set up it was dark. Sipping mint tea the Indian brave warmed himself by the cheery orange glow of the crackling fire. In the distance he could hear the cool night air whispering through the tree tops and the gentle babbling of the mountain stream. He was getting hungry, stomach growling he reached for his raw hide bag to get some pemmican, he imagined just how tasty it would be. Suddenly a chill went up his spine and his horse snorted and became a bit nervous. He thought that he could hear a noise in the distance but wasn’t sure. He sat quiet and listened for a while over the crackling of his fire he thought he heard twigs snapping. As he sat listening the noise became more distinct, he new without a doubt that someone was approaching his camp. Another chill ran down his spine as the noise grew louder. Suddenly his eyes grew wide and his knees became weak as the source of the sound appeared from the darkness of the thick woods. There standing silent before him, white bones glowing orange in the flickering fire light was a skeleton. The man new that he was being visited by a spirit. Trying to sound unafraid the Indian brave asked, “Spirit why do you visit me, what is it that you want?” The skeleton began to dance around the fire the rattle of its bones mingled with the crackling of the flames. As it danced, in a moaning, hollow, deep voice the spirit began to chant dah-tah-lah-tee-tee-tee, dah-tah-lah-tee-tee-tee. It chanted these words over and over dancing faster and faster. By now the man was terrified, voice trembling he said,” Spirit I do not know what it is you want from me. I have a long distance to travel and I have nothing to offer you except some of my pemmican!” Hands trembling, he broke off some of his pemmican and left it on a stone for the skeleton spirit. The skeleton began to chant louder and dance more vigorously. The man was so frightened that he dove into his tent and pulled his blanket over his head.

As everything went dark the sound of the spirits chanting faded into the cheerful sound of birds singing and the playful babbling of the mountain stream. With great relief the man realized that it was finally morning. Still shaken by his experience, the Indian brave wasn’t sure if it had actually happened or if it was all just a bad dream? All he new for sure is that he wanted to be away from this place as soon as possible. In no time he was packed he got on his horse and rode off quickly, anxious to see his family.

That day the Indian brave had traveled a great distance and by evening both he and his horse were exhausted. Remembering his experience from the previous night, the man set up his camp in a more open area beside a small pond. Eating a small portion of his pemmican and sipping mint tea, once again he warmed himself by a crackling fire. Suddenly the night air became still and grew colder. The man was filled with the same familiar dread that he had felt the night before. Pulse racing he stood up, peering into the darkness through the mist of his own breath, he could barely see something approaching his camp. Legs weak he sat back down as the spirit appeared before him. Again it started to dance bones rattling, in that same horrible hollow voice it started to chant dah-tah-lah-tee-tee-tee, dah-tah-lah-tee-tee-tee! In a frightened voice the Indian brave said,” Spirit I have nothing to offer you. I have a long way to go and my pemmican supply is very low!” The spirit seemed uninterested in what the man had to say and continued dancing and chanting. Once again the man broke off some of his dwindling supply of pemmican and offered it to the skeleton spirit. Once again the skeleton danced and chanted vigorously the sound of his hollow voice almost deafening the terrified man. The man hid in his tent begging the spirit to leave him alone…suddenly everything went dark.

The Indian brave awoke thankful to see the morning light, his horse was peacefully grazing near the pond. Still frightened by his experience the man packed up his belongings and left as quickly as he could. He traveled even faster and further then he had the day before hoping to leave the skeleton spirit far behind him.

That night the Indian brave and his horse were completely exhausted. It would take several days for him to reach the encampment and he only had one days worth of pemmican left. The nights were growing colder and even though the man was completely exhausted he had to build a fire to keep warm. He had to ration his pemmican and was getting very hungry. Again that night the spirit came to him dancing and chanting even more vigorously then before. “please spirit,” the man begged,” I have only enough pemmican for one day and it will take me several days to reach the encampment,” Once again the spirit ignored the mans plea and danced and chanted. Fearing for his life the man gave the spirit his last ration of pemmican then all went black.

The morning sun awoke the Indian brave. Damp and tired he pulled himself from the cold ground and packed up his belongings and started on his way. Today he traveled very slowly he was so exhausted and hoped that he would be able to make it to the encampment. That night he barely had the energy to make a fire. He sat with his blanket wrapped around him waiting for the spirit to appear. As it did every night the spirit came. This time the man said,” Spirit I have nothing to offer you my pemmican is gone.” The spirit seemed angry and danced and chanted moving closer and closer to the frightened man. It was only inches away from the man, bones rattling as it danced and chanted. Frightened beyond words the terrified man fainted.

He awoke in the morning cold, tired and very hungry. His only thought was, I will never make it to the encampment to be with my family and friends. He approached his horse who was peacefully grazing on lush green grass by a large tree. He was so exhausted last night that he didn’t have the energy to unpack his belongings. As he got ready to mount his horse he noticed a beautiful leather bag tied to his pack. Removing the bag he opened it, to his surprise he saw several bundles of pemmican. There was more then enough pemmican for him to reach the encampment.

That night after the Indian brave made camp he sat by the crackling fire and sipped hot mint tea and ate the delicious pemmican. He gave thanks to the skeleton spirit for its generosity. That night all was quiet and the man was never again visited by the frightening spirit. A few days later he reached the encampment, he was so happy to see his family and friends. That evening everyone sat silent around the camp fire as he told the story about his frightening encounter with the dancing skeleton spirit!

Thank you grandma for sharing this wonderful story with me. There is an important message in this story. When someone is in need you must help them and put their needs before your own. A very important message to teach such a young child.

Now this is really creepy! A few months ago my mom told me about some family members who had a very frightening and unexplained experience one summer. To give everyone their privacy I will not mention any names or the place where this spooky event happened.

One summer during an annual pow wow there was a group of people camping and having a small family reunion. The local school was located near the campground and the big top where the pow wow was being held. While the adults were all visiting several of their children, ranging in ages from nine to fifteen, went over to the school yard. Some time had passed and it was early evening when all of a sudden the parents could hear their children screaming and running from the school. When they reached the campground they were all crying and the color was drained from their faces. Some of the kids were so frightened that they couldn’t even speak and just held on to their parents tightly. Each parent took their children to their campers and tried to calm them down and asked them to explain exactly what had happened. It took a long time before the parents could calm down their children enough to hear their stories.

While the kids were up playing at the school they thought that they saw a deer coming towards the school grounds. As the creature got closer to their horror they noticed that it had the body of a deer and the head of a serpent. Even though the creature looked as if it was running it was actually floating just slightly above the ground. As it approached the school it didn’t slow it’s pace, instead it just went right through the walls of the school. The kids watched paralyzed with terror as the creature darted in and out of the school through the walls.

After the parents heard their children’s stories, suspecting that maybe their kids were playing a prank on them, they got together and compared their stories. They were surprised to hear that each child had told the exact same story there were no differences at all. What made the story even more convincing was the fact that each child, regardless of their ages, seemed equally shaken by the experience. Each kid was pail, shaking and crying as they explained what they had seen.

When my mom told me this over the phone chills ran down my spine. I do believe that there are many things that can’t be explained. I have researched hauntings and various unexplained encounters that people have had through books as well as the internet and I haven’t come across anything like the creature that these kids saw. If anyone has had an experience with a similar creature or has any idea what it could be, could you contact me at? margaux@artbymargaux.com The one thing that mom told me was that there was a lot of friction and tension between many of the family members and they thought that maybe the creature was a warning to end all of the negativity? I know if that was what it is I would listen to the warning! As far as I know there has never been another sighting of the frightening creature in the area since then.

I like to call this story ‘Close Encounter of the Absurd Kind’. I have changed the names of the people involved to save them a lot of embarrassment…heeheehee! You know who you are! Sorry but I just had to tell everyone this story it was just way too funny to keep to myself!

It was a cool summer night the sky was overcast with low hanging clouds. Helen was sitting outside on her deck having a coffee and cigarette. Suddenly something caught her attention. Up in the sky she could see a glowing object. It was shaped like a wagon wheel and spun clockwise and then counterclockwise. As Helen watched the object in total disbelief she noticed that it looked as if it was hovering closer and further away. Unable to believe what she was seeing she called her husband Harvey to come and take a look. Harvey noticed that it looked like rays of light were coming from the object to the ground. He got into his truck and went to investigate. Helen ran into the house when she heard the phone ring. It was her Uncle Russ he asked her if she saw the weird light in the sky. She said yes and that Harvey went to investigate.

A short while later she heard Harvey pull up in the truck. He walked into the house and Helen asked if he new what it was or where it was coming from. He looked at her with a big grin on his face and told her that they were laser lights from an outdoor rock concert that they were having about four miles away. It was just so funny Helen called her Uncle Russ and told him what it was. He said I am so glad you told me I was ready to grab my gun and go after it.

Ok ok, don’t laugh too hard. If you had no idea what laser lights were and saw something like that up in the sky. I am sure that you would be wondering what the heck it was. It is still really funny!

My mom told me when she was very young, she and my Aunt Laurie were walking home one night It was pitch black and they could barely see the dirt road that they were walking on. All they could see was the distant glow of the lights from their house across the field. All of a sudden they could hear this whooshing sound coming from behind them. They turned around to see this white thing flapping in the wind. It was close to the ground and moving quickly towards them. My Aunt Laurie was so afraid that she grabbed my mom and held her in front of her. ( My aunt was very brave…heeheehee!) Mom said that she held on to her so tight that she couldn’t move. The thing got closer and closer then finally they could hear laughter. My Aunt Grace couldn’t contain herself . My aunt Laurie and mom looked so terrified that Aunt Grace had to remove her sheet and broke into laughter. Mom said that it was a good thing that they were young and had strong hearts otherwise she is sure she would have had a heart attack!

Thank you Skylar for your awesome artwork and for sharing your very spooky story with us! Thank you Cara (mom) for giving Skylar a hand with his story!

“One day on a bright, sunny afternoon when I was 4 years old, I saw a black ghost with clawed hands float through our kitchen. It came from the basement stairs, and then went through the kitchen, and out through the side door. It changed our house , and my drawing studio (which is an ad-on) was gone. The ghost was a black lady. It was very scary. She had no face. She was very ugly, too. Just clawed hands. My mom was sitting right beside me feeding my baby brother, and she didn’t see, hear or feel anything strange, until I told her about the black ghost! She was afraid that it was a wailing banshee, so she e-mailed a witch named Fiona Broome and described the ghost to her. Fiona said that it was not a banshee. Banshees are very beautiful, while our ghost was very scary and ugly. Fiona Broome thought it was probably just a sad person who read a lot of gothic novels.” - Skylar Eyre

“The ghost came to our 1930’s house the day after our neighbor Veronica, who lived next door, died of cancer. (She spent a lot of time alone, probably reading.) She was in her mid-60’s.

Before she passed on, she developed a huge soft spot for Skylar and my other son Logan who was just born a few months before. All of a sudden, about a few months before she died it started. She gave him old toys from her basement, even an old bunk bed which was never brought into the house. (I believe that she was a divorcee with 6 kids.) Her daughter would come over and talk about how much Veronica liked my kids. After she died, and after the ghost came, a bunch of wild turkeys came to live in both our yards for about a month’s time. It was very strange indeed. I took a few photographs of them.

- Cara Eyre (Skylar’s mom)