What Follows After Midnight
A Villanelle of Irrevocable Choice
I should have turned away that bitter night,
When shadows whispered secrets through the gloom.
Now phantom footsteps follow in my sight.
The candle flickers, something isn't right.
Dead flowers wilt and wither in my room.
I should have turned away that bitter night.
Her portrait stares with eyes of waxen white,
And moths collect like mourners at a tomb.
Now phantom footsteps follow in my sight.
The mirrors all reflect a blighted blight,
My face grows gaunt, a specter I assume.
I should have turned away that bitter night.
Each hour crawls with ceremonial fright,
The pendulum that measures out my doom.
Now phantom footsteps follow in my sight.
I cannot sleep, I cannot bear the light,
The past returns to seal me in this womb.
I should have turned away that bitter night.
Now phantom footsteps follow in my sight.
About the Creator
Tim Carmichael
Tim is an Appalachian poet and cookbook author. He writes about rural life, family, and the places he grew up around. His poetry and essays have appeared in Bloodroot and Coal Dust, his latest book.
Keep reading
More stories from Tim Carmichael and writers in Poets and other communities.
Standing While Falling
Quotation from Friedrich Nietzsche "He who wrestles long with monsters should beware lest he himself become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you. Man is not destroyed by suffering, but by the meaning he makes of it."
By LUCCIAN LAYTH6 days ago in Critique
Comments (4)
Puts the creepy villain in Villanette. ⚡️💙⚡️
So good. The creeping terror is palpable. One of those ghosts that don't know they're dead, it's very unsettling.
Excellent! The repetition of “phantom footsteps” was brilliant. Gave a sense of marching dread. My favorite line was the moths gathering, it gives the whole thing an old, haunted feel.
Excellent Villanelle, Tim. Love the foreboding. The repeating lines help build the tension in the poem till it reaches its dark finale. Great entry to the challenge. Good luck!