In Limbo

She’s lost here somewhere,

Lost in limbo,

In these dark woods

Where we dare not go.

But I must find her

And bring her home.

She doesn’t belong here

Amongst the ravenous crows.

The moonlight spears

Like shards of blue glass

Through the thick canopy,

Piercing the black grass.

The trees block me

But I have a promise to keep

And I’ll push on through;

Miles to go before I sleep.

The air is thin

And the wind is stale.

Ancient undergrowth darkens,

As its victims pale.

I am lost here

And tread spiteful ground,

But I will stay lost

Until she is found.

And what of the trees?

They bear a strange fruit,

As blood stained leaves

Drip blood to the root.

Awkward figures sway,

Their faces sunken,

As cadavers drain

To the roots that drink them.

The high hanging bodies

Gaunt and garrotted

Not long had they fallen

Their blood not yet clotted

Why have they done this,

What had caused such fear?

To pick such an ending

So sudden, so severe.

Monochrome midnight

Hides shadowy figures,

Their traps awaiting

Near concealed triggers.

I hear them shufflling

Deep in the dark,

Their cruel intent

Scars ancient bark.

A ghostly mist gathers

And sinks all around,

It thickens the air

And crystals the ground.

Distant whispers drift

In unnatural tongues,

They conspire in blindness

To futile these lungs.

The woods are deep,

And I go deeper still,

The darkness thickens;

The wind is shrill.

I squint in the blackness,

Trying to see,

If I follow someone

Or if something follows me.

But I have promises to keep

And miles yet to go,

Further lost in these woods,

Where we dare not go.

Long before I sleep,

Where strange fruit hangs low,

Falling deeper into darkness,

Lost in limbo.

Copyright © 2011 by Simon Austin

Inspired by:
'Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening' by Robert Frost
'Strange Fruit' by Abel Meerpol