I Hear Knocking Poem by Patti Masterman

I hear knocking at the door
Maybe a visitor? I run, look out the front window-
And then they see my face: now they know I am here:
They begin to pound on the wood furiously
Then leave and come back with a sledgehammer
I back away, sorry now to have shown my face;
Now they will never leave, or give up
Thinking quickly, I barricade myself down in the basement
As the impatient pounding grows fiercer and yet louder
I can hears machine guns pumping away
Through the thin walls, at the series of dead bolt locks
A chainsaw starts up a racket
I slide into the air intake unit
And quietly close the door behind me
It's too cramped in here but it can buy me
A few seconds more just to do
What I now know I will have to do-
Though I had prayed it would never come to this
Never go this far-
Now there's the sound of a car engine
Tires squealing and then a huge - thud-
Tells me the front wall is no more
Well, I know they're inside now-
No doubt about that
Feet pound the floor above
Frantically, for several minutes, back and forth
Hunting, searching all the rooms nooks and crannies
Then it grows quiet- too quiet
I slide my feet in as close as I can, not daring to breathe at all:
I can see only through slits in the door,
Wishing in retrospect I had left just one window or door open
So they might give up, think I had deserted the place
Then I hear it up above the steps:
The door begins to open, eerily,
Creaking with that quality of a haunted house's door
In a low budget horror film
Stealthy steps descend now, unevenly
As if they are not- quite- sure, not yet.
Then I hear it, the last shovelful of dirt hitting my grave:
And I know it's 'game over':
'Are you ready yet?
It's starting now, we told you to prepare yourself
They're all waiting there for you now..'
I fumble in my pocket for my escape hatch,
Then I do it, trying not to think about it too much:
Quickly I swallow the little blue pill of cyanide
That will take me away from this growing horror-
I told them last year that I was never going to the Family Reunion again.