The Scream!

The boys were camped at Dismal Swamp
Super over, now telling ghost stories
It was something they did every year                      
Each one trying to tell the one most gory

The story about the circus train wreck
How the cat car broke open, they got away
And how the search was made with dogs
With no luck, none caught as of today

“I hear they scream like a woman," one said
Made them shudder, stare into the woods
“Come on, you sissies, let's go to bed.”
They zipped the tent fly, tight as they could

Unbeknownst, in the middle of the night
A dad came checking while they were asleep
Flashlight off, tripped over a tent stake
Bumped the tent and clumsily fell into a heap

“What was that?" asked a sleepy voice
“How do I know?" groggily replied another
“Grab your BB guns! Let's find out”
Trembling with fear, prodding each other

Unzipping their tent, they peered out
Saw a form crouching on the ground
“Oh, my gosh! Look! It's a big black car!!”
“Be quiet! Don't anybody make a sound!!”

Aiming their guns, they let fly with effect
And it screamed, turned, and tried to flee
The boys, crying, panicked and scattered
Screaming "Cat food! It's not gonna be me!!”

Whimpering loudly, the dad got to his truck
And then raced home as fast as he could
He painfully stumbled into the house
He woke his wife, as he knew he should

He gingerly sat himself in a kitchen chair
His wife rubbed ointment on his welts
She giggled as he told her what happened
Adding ridicule to how he now somehow felt

His son came rushing into the room
“Dad, guess what! We shot a big black cat!!”
“Its scream didn't sound like a woman!”
“It almost sounded human, imagine that!!”

Friday, June 24, 2022