A face, leering down at me,

Whispers in my sleep.

A face, painted, twisting truth,

Causes me to weep.

Whispers turn to darkened threats,

Echoing in my dreams.

The face seems happy, joyful, laughing,

But not all is as it seems.

I cannot wake from this fearful state,

Cannot pull myself away.

This face, this hovering now twisted face,

Tells me I must pay.

I must pay for sins I have not done,

I must pay with my life.

And as he speaks, his grating whisper

Cuts me like a knife.

My fear surprises even me

In the path of this monstrous clown.

This thing is the king of all my nightmares,

My screams and blood his crown.

Even when I wake from this harrowing dream,

His threat still lingers here.

I can't escape, that's the reason why

I shed each single tear.

Copyright © Catriona Elizabeth Mowat 2006