Where monsters dwell

When I was a kid, a stock setting for children's stories was the spooky wood; a place where strange, convoluted  trees reached out to grab the fleeing child, where roots tangled the unwary foot, where monstrous shapes lurked in the dusk.

We found that wood, today. And ventured inside.

It looked innocent enough at first ...

...but it quickly turned dark and threatening.

Dead, twisted branches reared high above our heads ...

... hiding tunnels and caves. Black windows looked down on us ...

... where unseen monsters lurked ...

Is that an eye in there?

A touch of deceptive familiarity, luring us deeper into the woods; a robin. Colourless, though, against the grey sky, and perched on bare, shapeless snags.

But what new threat is this? Godzilla? Godzilla with wings?

Some sort of prehistoric hairy mammoth, on the rampage! Hide!

I think that's the goddess Kali. Flee!

We barely escaped with our lives.


A Skywatch post.