ALONE AT NIGHT

I met a man with a walking stick down by the rivers bend

He spied me with his one good eye and said, ‘Come close, my friend’

I edged a little nearer and regarded him with doubt

I thought he had the kind of look my friends warned me about

His hair was neatly parted and his ears hung oddly low

His nose was slightly larger than most normal folks I know

His mouth turned one side upwards and his chin leaned one side down

His teeth had all turned yellow and he glanced nervously around

He then took one step closer and blocked my exit path

He raised his stick towards my nose and pointed as he laughed

He said, ‘It’s just you and I down here and now it’s getting dark,

Do you often walk alone at night, down on this off-beat path?’

My arse started to loosen and my lips began to shake

I wished I hadn’t come down here, oh what a dumb mistake!

If I ran left, he’d cut me off and trip me with his stick

If I’d go right, he’d do the same, my guts were churning, sick!

He moved in one step closer and hissed softly in my ear;

‘You shouldn’t walk alone at night, especially not down here!’

‘But luck is on your side, this night, so I’ll bid you farewell

I left my knife at home, you see. Goodnight, I wish you well’