Ghosts
The night’s oh so quiet, oh so very still
Hours since I said goodnight, trudged up the wooden hill
Something woke me from my sleep, a voice so very clear
It crept right on up to me and whispered in my ear.
On my clock, the glowing hands point up to 12 midnight
But sleep has now released me from its grip so tight
Had someone really called my name, or was it a nightmare?
I sit up straight in bed and whisper ‘is anybody there?’
A shadow moves, a girl appears so ragged and so thin
But even in the darkest hour she wears a cheeky grin
‘Come follow me,’ she says, ‘there’re things I have to show’
A cold hand grabs hold of mine and across the room we go
We sneak along the hall, right passed my parents' door
I pause until I hear the sound of my father's gentle snore
Then down the stairs carefully, step by step we creep
The living room door it is ajar and round the side I peep
The room it should be empty, with everyone in bed
But I gasp aloud in shock because it's full instead
But these are not real people, of that I'm quite sure
They're pale, and one just floated through the kitchen door
The girl she drags me in to the room before I can protest
'This is our house too you see, so come and meet the rest'
'We've been here for so many years but only play at night'
'We dare not show ourselves you see in case we cause a fright'
One by one the ghosts line up and shake me by the hand
Their touch is cold but they smile as if I'm someone grand
They're like a bunch of urchins; their hair could use a comb
I wonder how they ended up here, playing in my home
'This used to be the poor house' the ghost she did confide
'Lots of children came here and this is where we died
We're happy though as ghosts, no more abuse no longer slaves
But we need your help, you have to stop them digging up our graves!'
She took me to the kitchen and pointed through the glass
There were barriers erected, outside along the grass
The council, they were digging up the ground outside the front
Laying pipes in the gap between the house and the pavement
'That used to be the back yard, in centuries gone by
The road it ran the other side you see and that is why
Our graves are near the path, beneath the grass and stones
And when the men start work, they're sure to find our bones!'
'If they move our bodies, our souls will be in flight
And no longer will we play our games together through the night
You are our only hope right now; you have to make some plans
To stop the men from digging when they come back in their vans'
I wanted to help, I really did, but what was I to do?
When you're a kid, and only 8, there's not much hope for you
I thought of standing out there, I'd clear my throat and say
'I'm sorry, but you can't dig here, now kindly go away!'
Only no-one's going to listens to a child all on his own
And no-one else would believe me so I guess I'm all alone
I lean against the sill, and stare out through the pane
My heads caught in a whirl and I'm racking at my brain.
My eye follows the dug ground as it stretches off so far
And mars the neat grass like a long, unsightly scar
It weaves up and down in a line that's far from straight
Even moving out to the path to go round a neighbour's gate
I realise that the digging, it follows a marked route
Sprayed in blue upon the ground by a man wearing a suit
The workmen, they follow that line wherever it is sprayed
These are the rules and so that is where the pipes are laid
If I could find a way to change those lines upon the ground
Move them out onto the path then the graves would not be found
The ghosts would be OK then, their souls not be in flight
And forever they could play their games together through the night
I stuff my feet into my trainers, it's weird without my socks
Then creep up to the front door and undo all of the locks
I step out into the moonlight, creep round towards the back
Where my dad keeps all his DIY stuff inside an old brick shack
There upon the shelf, I see a tin of household paint
Called 'Antique Blue'; something that my mum had found quite quaint
I stand on a box; grab the tin, the colour will have to do
A quick search through some boxes and I find a paintbrush too
With just the moon for company, I paint new lines on the path
Then rub out the old ones with stuff used to clean the hearth
Finally I move the barriers, so that everything looks right
Tidy up, and head back inside as time winds up the night
In my bed I fall asleep just as dawn begins the day
Hoping with all I have inside that the ghosts will be OK
I'm really late that morning when I wake up with a jerk
I rush to school as the men arrive to carry on their work
I cannot concentrate at all in class, my mind is occupied
With ghosts, graves and digging, and the plan that I have tried
I wonder if it worked, or if they've seen what I'd done
When the school bell finally rings I head home at a run
The workmen are still working, a bit further along
I look around and try to see if anything seems wrong
My heart it leaps with joy at the grass without a mark
The workers have followed the line that I drew in the dark
It's hard to wait for midnight, I barely sleep at all
Just spend the hours wide awake staring at the wall
Finally it's 12 o'clock and I sneak down the stairs
Is this all for real, or just some weird nightmares?
The living room door is closed and I pause for a moment
What if there are no ghosts at all and the room it is vacant?
I take a breath, turn the knob, and walk into the room
To my dismay it's dark and empty, and quiet as a tomb
I stand there for an age, so confused and rather sad
Where are all the ghosts I saw, was I going mad?
Then suddenly the lights come on and in the room they file
All those ghosts I met last night, each one with a smile
They grab my hands, pull me forwards and dance around with me
The whole room full of children dancing round with glee
"We're safe, we're safe," they cry at me, "you saved us every one!"
"We thought that we were done for, an end to all our fun."
Sometimes I can hear them, or see things as they play
A creaking floor, a book askew, a shadow in a doorway
And now and then I join them, in the middle of the night
To run and dance together until the morning light.