Me and My Ghost
A little boy is followed around by a small ghost at Halloween.
A little boy is followed around by a small ghost at Halloween.
On Halloween I took a sheet
And cut two holes for eyes.
Because that night I’d trick-or-treat
And earn my candy prize.
I put it on and made my way
From door to door to door.
I won a lot of treats that day,
And ev’ry house brought more.
But then I turned a corner there
And what, then, did I see
Before me floating in the air?
A little ghost like me!
A tiny ghost, so very small.
I asked this little one:
“Is this a trick? Who’s doing that?”
But answer there came none.
I turned and tried to walk away
But looked around to see
The tiny flying ghostly thing
Was sticking close to me.
All night I went and gathered sweets,
I walked both there and here,
But ev’rywhere I went my ghost
Stayed very, very near.
And even after I went home
To count what I’d received,
The ghost refused to go away!
Twas not to be believed!
My bigger brother, name of Tom,
Was clever and well-read,
And when I asked him what was up
He thought a bit, then said:
“It’s obvious, to me at least,
What’s going on here, Bro:
The little ghost thinks you’re his dad
And that’s why he won’t go.”
We tried to tell the ghost the truth,
That we were not the same,
But he just hovered in the air,
Obedient and tame.
No matter what we said or did,
The ghost would not disperse.
And so, I knew he’d have to stay
For better or for worse.
The ghost went with me everywhere,
To school, to church, at play.
I found that I was liking him
A little more each day.
We soon became the best of friends
And never were apart.
Until there came that tragic day
That nearly broke my heart.
For Ghost and I were walking home
And then we chanced to meet
A stranger; twas about my size
And covered in a sheet!
No, not a sheet. It was a ghost!
A real ghost, oh no!
It saw my friend and said, “Oh, dear!
Wherever did you go?
You disappeared on Halloween
And I’ve been worried sick.
But now I’ve found you, so come on,
We’d better go home, quick.”
And now the truth of what occurred
Was very plain to see:
This little ghost thought I was mom
And so he followed me!
But now his real mom had come
To take her son away.
Mom wished me well, then off they went
“Goodbye,” I could not say…
But that was many years ago.
I’m all grown up today.
And I’ve not seen my little ghost
Since Mom took him away.
And yet, each year, on Halloween,
In the chill October air,
I feel I’m being followed, but
I look…and nothing’s there.
Friendship, Conversation
1. Why do you think the little boy in this poem, now all grown up, feels like the little ghost is following him every Halloween?