All Hallows Eve: A Villanelle

Dear George,

Here is a poem to celebrate the season.  Villanelles were first popularized by French poets in the nineteenth century.  They are 19-line poems that only use two rhymes (“ite” and “air” in my poem below).  There are five three-line stanzas, followed by a final four-line stanza.  The first and third lines of stanza #1 are repeated, on an alternating basis, as the third line of each of the subsequent three-line stanzas.  Both lines are included at the end of the final four-line stanza.  Villanelles are a tricky business, as you might guess.

Love,

Dave

            All Hallows Eve: A Villanelle 

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

Tricksters in masks scurry everywhere

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright

A pirate and a banshee wait for the light

A witch casts her spell, they stop to stare

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

Vampires hug shadows, ready to bite

A child screams out, “Bloodsuckers!  Beware!”

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright

A bumblebee clutches his lantern bright

Wails of lone wolves pervade the dark air

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

A swarm of zombies lurches into sight

Returning to Earth from a spooky nightmare

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright

Bags full, kids return to their porches bright

Greeted by mothers and fathers there

The wind turns chill and whistles through the night

Halloween eve, time for thrills and fright