Where am I at? What is this place?
As I walk among flowing grass
I am so scared my fear won’t pass.
With Octi held in tight embrace
My heart pounds at a rapid pace.
There’s no one else. I’m on my own
In this strange place I’ve never been
My fateful journey does begin.
All I see is vast unknown
As I wander off alone.
Where have all my powers gone?
The gift of flight is what I need.
I prick myself and now I bleed.
All my strength has been withdrawn.
Oh, help me, please, to carry on.
My feet are worn. I need to rest.
A shady tree where I can sit
Now offers me a brief respite.
But hidden in its woven nest
There is a most unwelcome guest.
It has eight legs to creep and crawl.
To sneak up on me as I lean
Against this shady tree of green.
With web of silk it starts to fall.
So stiff with fright I cannot bawl.
I find the courage that I lacked.
Jumping from my resting spot
It’s flung away with one quick shot.
I try to keep myself intact
But guess what I did now attract?
The rattle shakes as if to tell
That death is near if you so dare
To wander by my hidden lair.
My own fear is what I smell.
I want to scream and shout and yell.
In panicked fear I spin to flee.
I move so fast I fail to hear
A pack of creatures that appear.
They corner me with savage glee
And flash their snarling teeth at me.
There’s no escape within my sight.
I check behind me in the river
Hoping that it will deliver
A path to freedom from this fight
And this awful dreadful plight.
I need to make a quick withdraw
And scamper to the other side
To find a warm safe place to hide.
Before I leap I spy with awe
A reptile with a gaping maw.
From both directions I am bound.
Do I tread into a slaughter
Or swim across the deadly water?
The only option I have found
Is cowering closely to the ground.
As I await for my demise
I feel the pant of their hot breath
Roll down my neck like steaming death.
It is therefore a great surprise
Into the wind I slowly rise.
What is going to happen there?
What kind of monster stalks its prey
Of little girls they wish to slay
High in the sky up in the air?
I start to cry. It’s just not fair.
In the midst of my sobbing spree
I hear a voice that tries to calm
My jangled nerves like soothing balm.
I clear my eyes. What do I see?
The Professor looking back at me.
He holds me tightly at his side
and gasps for air in my tight clench.
With falling tears his shirt I drench.
My hair is stroked with rhythmic stride
To try and make my fit subside.
I feel ashamed. I want to leave.
My sisters point at me and laugh.
The butt of jokes on their behalf.
Oh, why must I be so naïve
To be that scared of make believe.
Homeward bound, I will not bring
Those memories of a creature’s wrath.
We stroll along a concrete path
And exit through a wrought iron ring
From bitey things that claw and sting.
You’d think that all is said and through,
But safe at home I still can’t sleep.
For in the night those biteys creep.
Here’s my advice to all of you.
Don’t take a nap at Townsville Zoo.
END
This poem was inspired by the Powerpuff Girls comic book #17, ‘Bedcrime Story’.
