Where the Monsters Live

When she was four, she knew where the monsters lived,

They would lie in wait under her bed

To grab her ankles and take her to the underworld.

When she was five, the monsters also hid in the dark spaces at the top

Of the stairs. Sometimes she heard them whisper in the attic.

When she was six, she now knew that not all monsters would hide

In the shadows.

Some hid inside her family, waiting, just waiting until they were fed by the bottles

Kept in the bottom of the wardrobe.

When she was ten, she knew that monsters lived inside friendly faces,

And when the monsters were gone, they would tell them how sorry they were

And that they wouldn’t do it again.

bobby stevenson 2019