Originally published November 9, 2018.

 

A walk through a cold foggy forest half past midnight is no man’s or woman’s favorite journey,

A harmless night in the beginning it was,

Consisting of fun and laughter camping out in the middle of the forest basking under the stars,

Like fireflies the stars are,

Trapped in the night sky teasing them with indistinct and intermittent flickers of light as they stretch out their hands yearning to hold the light above

Suddenly, after time passes during the night things are not so luminous and mystical,

The energy is different,

The sky seems farther and farther away,

The once beaten path back to civilization is now crowded,

Full with wild shrubs, poisonous plants, and thick blades of grass hovering over their footprints,

Panic is in the air,

Their once adventurous journey is not so grand anymore,

How to survive they wonder,

Who will come to save them they ask each other,

Why is this happening to them they cry,

One by one each person disappears as they continue to fall victim to the lights above,

Vanishing as they walk through this cold foggy forest half past midnight,

Be careful,

A kiss from death on the lips can dim your light…