The inspiration for this piece came from a comment made by my entangled friend.

For Lynn

OSTARA – Celtic Goddess of spring, associated with painted eggs and rabbits . Adapted by early Christians and repackaged as Easter

OSTARA’S DOMAIN

The moonlight swathe randomly picks

odd snow flakes like projector dust

while stark branches with frosted licks

quiver and sparkle in each wanton gust.

 Darkness, both lack of light and good

define all that is here, all that is not.

The lost and forgotten live in the wood

amongst the splinters and living rot.

 Pity not these creatures of almost shade

seen in the wake of the night bird’s flap

a darker patch flit of a remnant fade

for they seek pure souls to entrap.

 They feed off our fears and belief

drinking like sweet wine our dreams

only thus do they feel small relief

from their silent tormenting screams

 This place was once Ostara’s domain

and in winter she of spring would sleep

until it was the time to wake again

and from darkness the wood to keep.

 But they sought from the modern world a safe haven

they the shadow folk whose stories are no longer told

led to Ostara’s wood by the wings of Odin’s raven

replacing spring’s rebirth with their eternal cold.

 And so they cling to life these creatures of times past

here in the wood, stalking the unwary and the bold

yet lost wraiths and banshee cannot forever last

and soon comes the day when their last tale is told.