Fears

The child used to jump at shadows behind the door And scream at creaks in the floor. He used to sleep with a night-light For he feared a monster might come at night. But now – no more. No more monsters under the bed No more vampires rising from the dead. The child grew up, Replaced cereal in milk with black coffee in a fancy cup. Gone were the days of his childhood, As he became an awkward teenager And then marched into adulthood. The old childhood fears are behind him, No more hiding under the covers at the fall of moon beams. But then, one ordinary, sunny day, The child discovered the old fears have never really been away. They’ve taken new names But the fear, bitter and cold, remains just the same. This time it’s not a vampire coming to suck his blood But cancer to fester in him, to suck his life. This time it’s not a zombie rising from its grave But waking up alone, the leaving of his wife. This time it’s not witch casting a wicked spell But his boss saying the magic words, “You are fired.” This time it’s not a ghost coming to chill his bones But depression sinking in, losing interest in life, getting tired. This time the fears cannot be expelled Not by garlic, not by crosses, not even by daylight. Nothing can keep them away, And they come back to gnaw on him, day after day. For children fears are forgotten – until the next encounter, But for adults they are here to stay. The only way out, some say, is death, For they take refuge in their last breath. He suddenly remembered his childhood, When one day he bravely wandered into the woods, Just to make sure nothing was lurking – and then he understood. Like a child, he would fight the fear, conquer it, Little by little, bit by bit. He would embrace the fear And live with it all through the years.