BEFORE DARKNESS

Before darkness

There were lilting swings

That reached to the sky

I could kick a cloud with my Keds

And watch it bounce across the sky

There were tiny frogs in

Fountain pools

Jumping into my lap

To disappear into tall grass

Before darkness

Bicycles soared

Kites pedaled into the sky

Light was taken for granted

The monsters under the bed

Disappeared with a small lamp

Before darkness

Anything was possible

Now

Monsters lie in wait

They wear business suits

And drive a Mercedes

Darkness pivots and waves

Always following close at hand

Light still shines

In crevasses and tiny cracks

But darkness rules the day.