The Door
by Ron Larson
From a story by Henry S. Whitehead
On Halloween night, the driver felt a slight impact,
So he braked his car and got out to look around.
He found that heíd hit a youth, and this awful fact
Was magnified when he didnít hear any sound.
Tim Ward was crossing the street with much on his mind.
His father had just kicked him out of the apartment,
And now young Ward was going there hoping to find
A vital object that had filled him with regret.
He entered the building and went to the second floor.
He chose this time knowing they wouldnít be there.
He inserted the key in the lock of the apartment door,
But with the stubborn lock, Tim Ward got nowhere.
He tried it again, and the outcome was the same.
The door remained shut on the third, fourth, and fifth try.
Then he thought maybe the lock had been changed.
That wasnít it, because its many nicks caught his eye.
Tim Ward was scratching his head wondering what to do,
When a hullabaloo outside grabbed his attention.
He moved to the hall window and saw a rescue crew.
That had arrived to attend to a traffic victim.
Tim descended the stairs thinking about his father.
He hoped the old man would get over his anger,
And Tim was still quite angry about his mother.
When he saw his corpse, he fathomed the doorís closure.
© 2016 Ron Larson
Ron Larson is a retired community college professor (Ph.D.), and one of his hobbies is writing all kinds of poetry. His poem above is from his self-published book, "79 More Strange Stories Outlined in Rhyme." The book is available online, and the poem has not been submitted elsewhere. His web site is: ronlarsonclassics.com. His email is: patronlarson@gmail.com.
Find more by Ron Larson in the Author Index.
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