- The Feeling of Dread -

By John Herlihy

Amazing how the mind must patiently endure,

A variety of moods of which we are never sure.

These moods come and go without any control,

Our misery but a callous thief our good will stole.

Happiness has its moment but never stays long,

Our contentment a virtue that sings its own song.

A hint of peace may make its way into our mind,

Fulfillment brings an enrichment of another kind.

Go ahead, confess, upon awakening you feel sour;

At night, climbing in bed exhausted, you feel dour.

If that’s not bad enough, what about anger and rage;

It too has its moment before we quickly turn the page.

Then there is envy and jealousy as brothers in crime,

Who can tell the difference, their mood simply mine.

Frustration will thwart our efforts and hold us back;

Depression peeks over the horizon, ready to attack.

The one thing I cannot abide is the feeling of dread,

It too lurks in the shadows without showing its head.

Then it appears, a ghostly specter just standing there,

That reaches into the heart’s well to draw forth fear.

All our moods abandoned before this sickening dread,

Words constant, enduring, you never thought would be said.

Loneliness is bad enough, but what about impending doom,

The dread of its sure arrival will leave a person in a swoon.

On some dark, lonesome road emerges feelings of dread,

You walk in the light of the moon as fear lies in your tread.

You peer deep into the darkness expecting to see a fiend;

But the shadow fades in the light of a moon that gleamed.

Mother Nature has a way of giving, then relieving our fears,

Fickle indeed she is, but her noble presence always endears.

The light of the moon has dispersed all shadows in my head;

In thanks, I kneel in prayer before finding a way into my bed.

- - - - - -

(c) John Herlihy January 2019