Getting ready for the darkness
Getting ready for the night
When the streetlamps come on
And the stars shine bright

The children scurry quickly
To their worried mommas calling
But the dark already landed
And they find themselves falling

Bedtime: there are stories
Children hiding in their blankets
Parents soothing, trying hard
To make them just forget

Those nightmares, they are haunting
Swirling ‘round and ‘round their heads
They enter through the nose and ears
The torture never ends

Owls hoot, coyotes howl
Trees scratch their branches at the house
Each noise spooks, scares, frightens
The parents must be roused

Mothers look, there’s nothing there
Fathers check, no monsters present
Children shudder plead and beg
Sounds of horror, discontent

Nighttime; inescapable
Those hand will reach you everywhere
Don’t try to hide, don’t try to run
The night you shall beware