Chapter 7. Folk creatures

Fairies

Photographs of fairies, so far,
have all been faked.
It’s hard to escape the obvious conclusion
that it’s just something about fairies,
likely due to their reticence
and evidence of their magical powers.
A fairy can fly on its own
or ride on the back of a dragonfly.
A fairy can charm a person
though for some persons it doesn’t take much.
Therefore, they can certainly
make sure the camera doesn’t see them.
There are many ways to ward off fairies.
You can carry cold iron or a piece of bread,
or sport a four-leaf clover (if it’s not too wilted),
or wear your clothes inside out.
There’s no reason to ward them off
unless you believe in them,
or maybe you believe in them but don’t want
to be the photographer of the moment
when the fairy kingdom decides
to start diplomatic relations with humans.

Changling

Babies and old people
are physically similar—
bald or balding,
bleary-eyed eyesight,
no teeth,
weak,
bed-wetting,
and prone to sleeping a lot.
It makes sense
at least some babies
are changlings.
Elderly fairies
(therefore, small)
dumped, like parasitic breeder birds
laying their eggs in others’ nests,
into an unwitting family’s
loving cradle.
If you could watch them
carefully enough,
you’d find them dancing
and singing fairy charms
in a language
you don’t understand.

Goblin

People make up their own goblin stories
as though goblins didn’t really exist.
They change the ways goblins look and behave,
checking with no authority and honoring no heritage.
Goblins in the World of Warcraft game
are small green humanoids from the Isle of Kezan
who love money, technology, and explosives.
Goblins in the Harry Potter stories
are intelligent and skilled silversmiths and businessmen
who can perform acts of magic without a wand.
True goblins are unrelated to Spider-Man’s foe,
the Green Goblin, and are not created with a Goblin Formula.
True goblins were not invented for comic books.
The wide variation in depictions of goblins
may have arisen because of differences between tribes of goblins.
Some goblins, like redcaps, are more murderous,
and some, like hobgoblins, are more friendly.
A hobgoblin who assumes the appearance of a white cat
may be understandably reluctant to be seen in its true ugly form.
It’s also not easy to describe a creature
who can change its appearance and become invisible at will.

Golem

A certain letter is all it takes,
given the ritual to harden an intent,
changing death to life and
animating a man of clay.
We should not fear the golem,
only the intent,
unless the golem can prove
that we, too, like clay,
can be made to do another’s bidding.

Jinn

The jinn are not human,
and they are not alien,
but they may pretend to be alien.
They are pranksters that masquerade
as monsters, fairies, or genies,
and do not stint when blaspheming.
They create crop circles,
make flying saucers fly,
and trade the weak for their souls.
They don’t obey our rules
or do our bidding
or conform to our ideas of them.

Lilith

Young men dream
Lilith will visit them
in the night.
Woman or demon
what does it matter?
They will ask
“How could I help it?
What could I lose?”
She’s a monster
only if you see her
in the dark.

Nachtkrapp

When I was a child they told me if I didn’t sleep,
if I stayed awake, I would see the night raven,
and it would take me away and eat my heart.
Its feathers are boggy air that make you sick.
Its wings are strong like falling trees.
Its beak is a pair of scissors without a handle.
That didn’t work. I had an early fascination
with large powerful birds,
and tried to stay awake until it came.

Oni

It is said that the Oni
are souls of the dead
who must torment the living
whose intentions are evil;
however, the ability of Oni
to judge intentions
is pathetic and feeble.
Oni are hairy monsters
with red, blue, or green skin
sharp teeth and claws
and bovine horns.
You’ll know them because
they wear tiger-skin loincloths
and carry iron clubs;
however, recognizing an Oni
for the torment it intends
will do you little good.

Phantom cat

Many people all over have seen a large cat
where jaguars, cougars, and leopards don’t live
and in spite of searches for it
it cannot be found.
A pet or mascot released into the wild,
a feline escaped from a zoo or circus,
no rational origin has been established,
yet the cat cannot be found.