Afraid of the night

[wasellajam]

Afraid of the night

Edit 2.0

Childhood is afraid
of the night, the thin hands
of malevolent ghosts. Youth is unafraid
of the night, with its host
of stars like sheep, in the land 
of a pale goddess moon.

Mid life is afraid 
not of night, but the soon
coming dawn, upending 
respite and dreams of the past
where it hides from the future, not a friend.

Old age is afraid 
of the night once again, 
of the one 
with no light,
with no end.


Edit 1.0

Childhood is afraid
of the night, the thin hands
of malevolent ghosts. Youth is unafraid
of the night, with its host
of stars like sheep , Cynthia, in the land 
and her wand 
of the effulgent moon.
Mid life is afraid 
not of night, but the soon
coming dawn, upending 
respite, its dreams of the past 
where it hides from the future, not a friend.
Old age is afraid of the night
once again, of the one 
with no light,
with no end.

Original

Childhood is afraid
of the night, the thin hands
of malevolent ghosts. Youth is unafraid
of the night, with its host 
of silver sheep in the land
of the moon.
Mid life is afraid 
not of night, but the soon
coming dawn, upending 
respite, its dreams of the past 
where it hides from the future, not a friend.
Old age is afraid of the night
once again, of the one 
with no light,
with no end.

For me “pale goddess moon” is lovely to say, its language suits the poem but keeps the youth and it gods stories idea. Wondering about the change in meaning from effulgent to pale but it works for me.