There’s nothing to fear but fear itself;
I don’t believe those words myself.
What about monsters, the devil himself?
I could be disembowelled by some evil elf!
Every night before I sleep,
I check beneath the bed and sheets.
For horrible beasts with razor sharp teeth.
They’ll rip me apart while I’m counting sheep!
With my bed side light I can sleep without fright.
My room is so bright, I’ll survive the night.
For the ghosts can’t hide away from my sight.
But tonight I’ll be brave and turn off the light…
A creak, a crack
I’m under attack!
My dreams are breaking, I find myself waking.
The devil is snaking; it’s me he’ll be taking!
Under the sheets in the dark, I’m quaking.
I need to find a way to stop shaking.
I look up and see teeth, shiny and sharp.
I’m their target, alone in the dark!
Take my torch in hand to steady my heart,
With a shine of the light, tear the evil apart!
I must be strong, and oh so brave.
I can’t let the monsters make me their slave.
If I don’t fight back, I won’t be saved.
I must send those beasts to their endless grave!
I devised a plan to take control;
To vanquish every ogre and troll!
I need a torch, and a sturdy bowl;
A sweeping brush to save my soul.
Now, each night before I rest in my nest:
I recheck the bed and do my best
To settle my nerves and calm my chest,
To find the pests; wherever they rest.
The bowl’s a helmet; in case of attack.
With torch in hand I lay down flat.
And poke with the brush where the monsters are at;
They scatter from light like a vampire bat.
I’ve waged my war, I move to the drawer.
I’ve never thought to check here before,
But shine my torch and lift clothing galore.
I see nothing there, but I had to be sure.
With my check nearly done, my panic abates.
I take my torch, bowl and brush to the drapes.
My torch goes dim, I hear claws scrape…
I must be ready when the ghosts take shape!
I bash with my brush,
Turn the fiends to mush,
Shine my light in a rush,
Till the monsters are crushed!
I don’t have a wardrobe, but you should check there,
You don’t want to wake to a terrible scare!
With the brush in your hand; demons beware!
With my check now done, I can rest without care.
There’s nothing to fear but fear, I see:
With torch and brush, the devil fears me!
I scare the elves, the monsters flee,
With my torch held close, I can finally sleep.
*
Biography
David Edwards is a Dublin based writer. His writing path started with stage plays and has slowly meandered towards children’s poetry and novels. For most of his life, he felt like he never would, and never wanted to grow up, and although life has forced some change to that, writing for children has been the his tie to youth. Over the years, he has tried to find any outlet for his creativity, from music to circus arts, from stand up comedy to theatre, but the focus has always been the same: make someone’s day that little bit brighter. Many of David’s plays have been put on to large and small crowds and one of his puppet shows is currently on display in the Wax Museum. He is always looking for new projects to work on, which led him to completing the NaNoWriMo challenge in 2015. Since then, he has become focused on completing his first novel, balancing his time between writing books and studying for his software development degree.
Mark Hill is an illustrator/photographer living in Dublin. He is self taught illustrator and went to IADT to study a degree in photography. He now splits his time between professional photography and illustrating. Mark lives with Kate and his two cats Nymeria and Pippin. “I enjoy the other worldly. Creating stories using beautiful, unnerving images. I get a lot out of collaborating with other artists and their works of any medium. I find that when two great art forms collide you always have the opportunity to create something special.”
Tales From The Forest 