I ... entered the poem of life, whose purpose is ... simply to witness the beauties of the world, to discover the many forms that love can take. (Barabara Blackman in 'Glass After Glass')

These poems are works in progress and may be updated without notice. Nevertheless copyright applies to all writings here and all photos (which are either my own or used with permission). Thank you for your comments. I read and appreciate them all, and reply here to specific points that seem to need it — or as I have the leisure. Otherwise I reciprocate by reading and commenting on your blog posts as much as possible.

1 November 2011

31st October

The little girls from across the road
came trick-or-treating tonight
in their witch and fairy costumes.

We’d forgotten Halloween, crude
corruption of Samhain — 
which anyway is a different season 
here, different time of year.

But we had some jellybeans,
emergency rations in case
his blood sugar drops. I poured a handful 
into their empty icecream bucket.

I wonder what they’d have said
if they’d known the smiling old couple,
their neigbours, were actual witches.


Submitted for Poets United's Poetry Pantry #73.

Sharing 11 years later with Poets and Storytellers United at Friday Writings #50, where Rommy invites us, in honour of Halloween, to share something 'sweet'.  This old Halloween memory is a sweet one, and also the poem mentions the traditional giving of sweets.
This poem also appears in Sherry's feature for Poets United: Poems for a Witchy Halloween, along with poems by herself and Magaly Guerrero.
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30 comments:

  1. Isabel Doyle2 November 2011 at 04:48

    we have a very black cat hanging about if you would like to borrow him ...

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  2. Rosemary Nissen-Wade2 November 2011 at 07:15

    Love to! But our resident black cat woud probably object, :)

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  3. Pearl2 November 2011 at 12:11

    I suppose it could have been a teaching moment.

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  4. Rosemary Nissen-Wade2 November 2011 at 14:31

    They were a bit young for that, I think, and mainly interested in the lollies. When at first I said, 'I haven't got a treat, you'll have to do a trick instead,' they looked blank, and then alarmed. Lucky I remembered the jelly beans. :)

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  5. Maxwell Mead Williams Robinson Barry4 November 2011 at 13:12

    haunting, smiles.

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  6. Rajani28 October 2022 at 15:27

    There's some copycat halloween trick-or-treating that has been happening here the last few years...mostly urban kids exposed to how it is done in America. But I hope I'm there when they ring a random doorbell and a real witch shows up.. that would be something!!!

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade28 October 2022 at 17:03

      The trouble is, real witches seldom wear pointy hats etc.

      Delete
    2. Rommy29 October 2022 at 00:01

      I like to wear anime inspired shirts 😂

      Delete
    3. Rosemary Nissen-Wade29 October 2022 at 12:07

      I always wear a pentacle, and all my jewellery is magical and/or healing in some way. But this doesn't mean my witchiness is readily identified.

      Delete
  7. Jim28 October 2022 at 16:59

    I enjoyed your write and smiled after your last. Makes us smile and ponder how the little girl across the road would take knowing more about her neighbors?

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade28 October 2022 at 17:05

      One family did figure it out, and used to call on me for help sometimes – for healing, or mediumship. It was a good bargain: they used to mow my lawn and so on in return. (But the kids grew up and moved out.)

      Delete
  8. Jim28 October 2022 at 17:03

    BTW, when using our laptop tonight my Norton antivirus would let me read this post but now I'm using my old Galaxy S8 read it just fine.
    ..

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade29 October 2022 at 07:51

      Oh my goodness, I do hope I am not giving everyone a virus! (This is my old blog.) But if everyone else got through without a warning, I hope that means it's OK.

      Delete
  9. Rommy29 October 2022 at 00:04

    Some of the kids in the neighborhood know about me, but only if I'm friends with their parents.

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade29 October 2022 at 07:54

      Now I have another witch living next door! Newish neighbours. Of course she knows it is really Beltane here this time of year, and her kids are pre-school age anyhow (uninfluenced yet by classmates) so I expect they won't be doing the Halloween thing.

      Delete
  10. colleen29 October 2022 at 00:49

    Ha Ha! Love that conclusions. I can see those jellybeans in the bucket in my minds eye so well.

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  11. Helen29 October 2022 at 05:10

    In our neighborhood, parents dress in costumes and accompany their children ... now that is a TRUE treat. Jelly beans for dropping blood glucose .... yep.

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade29 October 2022 at 07:48

      Here parents often accompany their children too. It's a good practice!

      Delete
    2. Rosemary Nissen-Wade29 October 2022 at 07:49

      (But they don't dress up too, just hover in the background as protection.)

      Delete
  12. Penelope Notes29 October 2022 at 06:49

    A pretend witch meeting a real witch sounds like the start of an awesome tale. :)

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary Nissen-Wade29 October 2022 at 07:47

      Ah now, there's a good thought! (Feel free to use it if you wish.)

      Delete
  13. Magaly Guerrero29 October 2022 at 09:48

    I love this one so much. It describes the season (and my feelings of it) to the point. And the question made me cackle.

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  14. dsnake130 October 2022 at 03:22

    Halloween is pretty quiet here (at least in my neighbourhood).
    I enjoyed your poem, and I really love the zinger at the end. :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Sunra Rainz1 November 2022 at 07:58

    Lovely poem, Rosemary. And I bet you didn't look like witches either! Happy Samhain :-)

    ReplyDelete
  16. purplepeninportland.com1 November 2022 at 11:54

    Sweet, sweet witchy lady!

    ReplyDelete

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