Afraid of the Dark

Wed, 11/04/2015 - 14:20 -- Scottie

When I was a little kid
I was afraid of the dark.
I dreaded bed time everynight
and when finally forced to turn off the lights , it took me two steps to get from the light switch, all
to the way to my bed.

I used to to make my mom kneel beside the bed and pray with me.
My hands clasped together tight, trying to hold what little bit of light might be left floating around in my room
And after a delayed amen
She tell me Go to sleep
you've got school in the morning

But I couldn't sleep
And even now
As a senior in high school
I'll go home
Wishing my mom could kneel beside the bed and pray with me
Because in a few more nights

I'll be walking across the stage
Having a diploma and responsibility dropped into my hands like a pillow
To hard to help me sleep on

Tonight
I'll question closing and opening my eyes
Because either way I'd see the same thing
And either way I'd have a bad dream

When i was younger , the items in my room would to mutate in the grasp of night
My teddy bears turned to clown faces
Ceiling fans to sharp swords

And now, those same teddy bears turn into college mascots
Ceiling fans spinning showing how quick this year will go by
My TV screen, a gaint display of the gpa it takes to get into the university of Florida

When I was younger , I'd jump from bad dreams in a cold sweat
Cluching my blanket like a safety net
Sprinting to go to my mother's room with legs like Bambi and goose bumps riding down my back
Id say mommy I had a dream and I was with all of my friends and a monster took them away
Mom I'm scared
Can I sleep in your bed ?

And now , as a senior in highschool I'll go home and have a bad dream
Where a monster, as tall as the sat scores it takes to get into UCLA
arms as wide as the distance I'll be from my family
Teeth as sharp as a goodbye to all the people I love as we go separate ways

I'm not afraid of the monster
I'm afraid I can't defeat the monster

They expect us to be kings of the classroom
when we still have to raise our hands to go to the bathroom

They expect us to assign a career tothe rest of our lives
When we still get assigned seating during class time

But in early May,
They'll expect us to drop our blankies
When this whole time we've been being treated like babies

But no pacifier can silence the roar of adulthood
No nursery rhyme to rock-a-bye the the mountains we'll have to climb
The training wheels are about to come off, and i don't know the difference between falling
And failing
But mom I'm afraid
Mom
I'm scared
Mom..
I'm afraid of the dark

And tonight
instead
of kneeling beside the bed and praying with me
or telling me how bad I need to get some sleep for school in the morning...
Please
Show me how to make the darkness..
Afraid of me.

This poem is about: 
Me
My country
Our world
Poetry Terms Demonstrated: 

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