Ghost stories are fascinating little tales that explores the unknown and mysterious. It's what we tell each other to scare kids into behaving and experience a little fear ourselves. Ghost stories are as scary as they are comforting and familiar. Every culture has their ghost stories, and every ghost story serves to bring people a bit closer, using a tiny dose of fear.

Ghost Story

The ghost watched solemnly from his perch

atop the high, lonely crown of the hill.

The old man threaded his way through the tall grass,

aiming for the lakeshore

to throw bread to the geese.

The very thought made the ghost sneer in disgust.

He wanted to blaze down into the old man's path;

use a ghastly breath

to suck the feeble life energy out of him.

Once the ghost took a step forward,

he remembered he wasn't much of a ghost anymore.

The spell had changed him.

Now he could manipulate the living world,

feel real air rush through his lungs.

But death still lingered inside him,

clinging to him like a mortal sickness.

He would give nearly anything

To return to the land of the dead,

but he had a task yet to complete.

A lingering sunset, boasting a sky of

purple,

blue,

orange.

Falling over the meadow.

The shadows grew longer, the air cooler.

The lakeside quiet,

with only the soft quacking of the ducks.

The old man took a seat on a rickety bench

Unaware that death, quite literally, was at his back.