tell me, do you know the hag?

​

 

I know her well, this mare of night,

who comes to me when goes the light

who preys upon my heart contrite,

and beckons me to hear her

 

She slowly crawls upon my bed,

my body feels of molten lead,

I want to flee, but lie instead

In silent, sickly terror

 

She’s sitting high upon my chest,

I wince before her flaccid breast

I lay here prone at her behest

A waking corpse before her

 

I take in every fearful feature,

demons must have spawned this creature

Would that my tearful eyes beseech her

Mercy! I implore her

 

My mouth hangs open, begs for air,

it gapes in song that none can hear

A dark lament that none would share

Dear Jesus, please, one breath!

 

Tell me, do you know the hag?

Lost souls to Hades she does drag.

She’s too much blood for one small rag

But not enough for death

 

I feel her frigid fingertips,

they push their way between my lips,

They taste of rot and old horse whips

My will cannot restrain her

 

Tell me, do you know her taste?

I lay here still as she lays waste

to all the dreams that I’ve misplaced

The dreams that don’t contain her  

 

She grins behind her matted hair,

and whispers words I’m loathe to hear

Her voice, like maggots in my ear,

The words she rasps are scathing

 

Tell me, do you know her voice?

Tell me, why does she rejoice 

To see me weep? I have no choice  

My body is her plaything

 

My nose is filled with death, decay,

old meat beneath a summer's day

The rotten eggs hell’s fowl must lay

I feel my will surrender

 

Tell me, do you know her smell?

It calls to mind a sulfurous hell

That deep, dank pit where mad souls dwell

In naked, savage splendor

​

Since to my bed I did resign,

a bitter chill has gripped my spine 

Yet cold sweat makes my body shine

like coals upon my brazier

 

Tell me, do you know the feel,

of something sharp that isn’t real?

She rubs my skin, I watch it peel

Her nails the dullest razor

 

I can’t escape her, cannot move,

tell me why does she reprove

one such as me? What does this prove?

What joy does she derive? 

 

It feels much like a twisted game,

a moth caught in a deadly flame

It’s death, given a different name,

From which I can’t revive

 

There’s little more that she can do,

she’s taught me pain and fear in lieu 

of all those things I thought I knew

And now, she’s started rocking…

 

What can it be that makes her grin

and lick the spittle from her chin?

Her eyes are eager, wild within

But hold! What is that knocking?
 

My door swings open, one long creak,

the rusty hinges old and weak

They make the sound that cats might shriek

Then, “Dada? Are you sleeping?”

 

Oh God in Heaven, hear my prayer!

You have to get her out of here!

She hasn’t yet reached her third year!

And now begins her weeping

 

She gives my hand a frantic shake,

but doesn’t know I cannot wake, 

It’s all too much, my heart will break.

My tortured mind’s unweaving

 

She tries to wake me, tries so hard,

but ‘round my heart the hag stands guard

The window to my soul is barred

And now, my daughter’s leaving

 

No, don’t give up, I try to plead,

 I long to give you what you need, 

I can’t undo this wicked deed

My will is overpowered

 

I watch my dear one leave the room,

a rose that wilts where one should bloom

 I lay here empty in this tomb

A man that’s been devoured 
 

The old hag rises, gaunt and tall,

her shadow flickers on my wall

She reaches down... retrieves a doll

Forgotten by my daughter

 

She shows no mercy, no regrets,

She toys with us, her worthless pets, 

Another wolf the night begets 

To chase the sheep to slaughter 

 

Oh God, would that my wife were here.

Her gown still hangs upon her chair

Since her slow death, it’s been a year

Of errors, weakness, folly

 

The hag now slides toward my door,

her bare feet shuffle on the floor, 

I’m thinking, Please God, please, no more...

When my daughter calls for Dolly

 

Once more I try my best to scream,

to rip me from this darkest dream, 

For nothing is what it would seem

In nightmares without reason

 

I know I’ve failed, I know not why.

How many tears can one soul cry? 

A time to live, a time to die

To everything a season

​

I know for certain I’ll be sick,

the bile in my throat rises quick

I hear my daughter’s doorknob click 

I hear her floorboards creak

 

My head now throbs, my innards cramp,

the sheets beneath me cold and damp

The flame of hope, like my child’s lamp

Fades quickly, low and weak

 

Tell me, tell me, TELL ME WHY!

...But darkness gives me no reply

I have to save her. I would die

My promise for to keep 

 

But is this slumber? Is this hell?

Perhaps between the two I fell.

I have to break the old hag’s spell

I        must       not   

  fall     

                    asleep.

​

​