Hi, welcome to the DustyWrites subsection of DustyReviews.com. If you like what you read and you would like to read more, the rest of my creative offerings are HERE.
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Through the Wooded Door
I walked a path toward a wood,
A forest black in truth and name,
For on its edge, I had long stood,
And something new I yearned to claim.
I left the places light perceives
And journeyed through the wooded door
Beneath the whisper of the leaves,
Through shadows cast across the floor.
A watchful owl sat perched ahead,
With feathers white, and eyes that glow,
Spoke a sound to wake the dead
Who might be napping just below.
Fear demanded, “reverse course!”
But I continued on instead
More quickly, but with no remorse,
For the route that I had tread
Forward, forward, into blackness
Armed with nothing but a light
Onward, onward, with no slackness
Of my steps into the night.
Along a twisting, winding trail,
I walked ’til I lost track of time,
Until I saw upon a hill,
A house with steps for me to climb.
There seemed to be no need to knock,
I pressed my hand upon the door,
I was unimpeded by a lock,
So I ventured through the wood once more.
The creaking boards beneath my feet
Spoke loudly as I looked about,
As did the woman in a seat,
Who at my presence gave a shout.
My heart stopped first, then so did I,
Though my thoughts raced to the door,
She demanded that I tell her why
I stood there thus upon her floor.
She was pale and silver, stooped and old,
Her eyes alight with fear and fury,
I mumbled apologies and told
Her that she had no need to worry.
As I explained to her my wooded walk
Her eyes relaxed but not her scowl
When I paused for her to talk
She asked why I had ignored the owl.
I told her that I could not heed
The warnings of the watchful bird
For greater still had been my need
Than calls for caution that I’d heard.
She broke the silence with a cackle
And asked about my great desire
I heard a sound, a burning crackle,
And smelled the burning of a fire.
As scents of smoke soon filled my nose
With unease I told her swiftly
Then I watched her as she rose
And to my astonishment she kissed me.
The old woman, old no longer,
Transformed before me to her prime,
Her cheeks were flushed, her body stronger,
“I give to you abundant time.”
I looked down next and saw my body
Lifeless on the aging floor,
And a thought came to me oddly,
As though I’d seen this scene before.
Forward, forward, out of blackness
I ran toward home without a light
Onward, onward, with no slackness
Of my steps into the night.
I emerged out of the trees,
Sometime later – days or weeks –
With a gift no man could seize
Though he diligently seeks.
Excellent! Keep it up!
Thank you! I will try!
Hi! I do not know if you’d be interested in reading it or not, but I wanted to let you know I have a website now that is specifically for creative writing. “DustyWrites.com”
Yes! I’ll look it up. Thank you, Dusty. Are you still keeping your stuff on WP, too?
That’s great!
Yeah. I’ll keep DustyReviews, too. I’m just going to have two sites. One will be for reviewing books, movies, etc., and the other will be for what I write. Based on my observation, it appears that a majority of the people who read what I write are here for the reviews stuff, and a minority of readers are here primarily to read my writing. I want to see what my writing does and how it grows, when it stands on its own.
I like your ideas on this. I frequently experiment with various writing sites, too. Excellent!
Thanks!
How did you get your own site? It’s beautiful!
Omg I absolutely loved the poem. It was like a fairytale in the form of a poem.
Thank you! I’m very happy that you enjoyed it! I was in touch with my inner Grimm Brother when I wrote this, apparently, but it ended up being one of my favorite things that I’ve written thus far.
I think it turned out great and I actually did get Grimm Brother vibes from it.
I’m glad those vibes came through. Thank you! I definitely value and appreciate the encouragement.
You’re totally welcome!
Hi Pooja! I do not know if you’d be interested in reading it or not, but I wanted to let you know I have a website now that is specifically for creative writing. “DustyWrites.com” That’s why I haven’t been doing any creative writing on the DustyReviews site.
I love this poem! Wonderful dark imagery and a provocative ending.
Thank you! I’m happy that you enjoyed it!
Hi Dawn! I do not know if you’d be interested in reading it or not, but I wanted to let you know I have a website now that is specifically for creative writing. “DustyWrites.com” That’s why I haven’t been doing creative writing on the reviews site in a long while.
That was eerie but familiar in a happy sort of way. Maybe it was the Grimm component!
Thanks! Yeah, I don’t usually know what I’m going to write until I start writing. It ended up feeling very Grimm-ish. That imagery was fun to work with and I enjoyed burying some mystery and metaphors in the piece.