Fairy Tales

I traced her hair with my eyes
Winding down and twisting
With highlights of silver and gold
The natural black in contrast
To her pale and shrivelled face
Made her look like a witch
In fairy tales told as I listened
With suspense and shivered
In the dark only five years old

And as I reminisce I realise that
The cottage lies empty
And the woods so green by day
And dark by night
Will never play host
To my adult imagination
Caught up in the throws of life

To play I must revert
Re-enact my joy at stories read
And see through the eyes of my child
As I sit down beside the bed
Of my little one
Only when I share her emotions
Of stories told all new to her ears
Will the dark black hair
And gaunt face of the witch
Stop haunting me in my nightmares