The Writers Voice
The World's Favourite Literary Website

Brand New Day

By

Rusty Broadspear

A dark moonlit field sloped down away from me,

To a small copse of trees that sipped life from a small pond.

In the centre of the field was a dog, an old collie dog,

Head thrown back in silhouette, howling in bemusement

Or maybe terror.



I was scared. Had I woken from life into a nightmare?

So quiet and still except for howling that filled the air.

The Moon was full to bursting; looking up, it hurt my eyes,

It was then I noticed there was something terribly wrong

With our skies.



The blinding Moon was accompanied by a solitary star

So high and alone in this heavenly clear night-time blue.

Petrified, terrified. Was this an omen? I thought of you

And your sleepy head. I thought of home. I thought of bed

And loneliness too.



So, during the day, what secret skeletal phantom figure

Had swept away the stars? The dog’s howl was deeper, higher,

Louder, more sinister. The sky darkened, but not accompanied

By additional stars. Did the Moon then shake imperceptibly,

Or move just a tad?



Eyes darting from dog to Moon, Moon to dog, back to moon.

Dog’s now at bottom of field, near the trees, didn’t see him run.

Huge shadow zipped across the grass. Looked up just in time

To see the Moon settle back, after a lightening quick downward arc,

Must have skimmed my head.



I was on my knees, in a vacuum of eerie graveyard silence,

The dog was gone, was dead, had run or was lying low and quiet.

A slight shift of lighter then darker I looked to the sky,

The man in the Moon laughed silently, mockingly, looking down at me

With a badly burnt out eye.



From my coat pocket I pulled a can of Coke, still chilled and wet,

Looking refreshingly real.

Silly, but I thought of the old Ad. ‘Come alive with Coca Cola,’

I hummed it at first, then sung it, then cracked open the can,

Sprinkling this golden liquid over the grass. I ran round the field,

Yelling the song, screaming it, praying it. Tears, tune and words

Flew like spittle into the night air.



I fell into the Earth, like a dead weight, stumbling over the dog.

He whimpered and wagged and chuffed, burying his snout

Into my neck. I reached out an arm and hugged him, he was so real.

Shovelling his head under me, he wanted to play - so I rolled over.



The Sun was so warm and bright, ice blue sky and whitest of clouds,

Birds flew and chattered, an empty can lay nearby,

This was a brand new day.

Critique this work

Click on the book to leave a comment about this work

All Authors (hi-speed)    All Authors (dialup)    Children    Columnists    Contact    Drama    Fiction    Grammar    Guest Book    Home    Humour    Links    Narratives    Novels    Poems    Published Authors    Reviews    September 11    Short Stories    Teen Writings    Submission Guidelines

Be sure to have a look at our Discussion Forum today to see what's
happening on The World's Favourite Literary Website.