Into the Mist
By Daniella Kaufman
WC: 155

Creak!
Take a peek. All the monsters are gone.
Those shrieks? They’re the squeaks of a settling house.
A skittering shadow is only a mouse.
With sensible answers, we sleep until dawn. . .
The monsters slip into the mist.

Splash!
Swim the surf. There’s no merfolk to fear.
The tides do not hide their bewitching sea song.
Biologists say they were seals all along.
Through science, the sirens of lore disappear. . .
Their hums drift away in the mist.

Whoosh!
Tread the trails to secluded locations.
A breeze is the reason the trees sigh and sway.
Peculiar plants are not portals for fae.
The wonders of nature now come with citations. . .
Will every myth cease to exist?

Stop!
Do not think of the places they hide.
Leave them in stories—still here, but not quite.
Yet, even though reason keeps shining its light,
despite feeling fright, for one night, we decide. . .
to wander again in the mist.