When What Is, Isn't, Or Is It?

I rolled over to find it

(this shadow on my wall)

It looked a bit bent

and stood about six foot tall

I rearranged my pillow

to get a better look

Its eyes seemed to follow

with each step my eyes took

And then, in an instant

it appeared to be gone

But my mind was persistent

I searched the doorway till dawn

I awoke in the morning

still scanning the wall

Was it some kind of forewarning

or was it nothing at all

I thought of the shadow

it seemed, all through the day

Like a nagging ol' crow

the thought would not go away

I rushed through the day

anxious to crawl back into bed

To search for a trace

of that stranger, unmet

I saw reflections of car lights

dancing on the window

But never caught sight

of that curious shadow

Everyday, everynight

for what seemed like a month

I altered the light

and still, nothing showed up

I felt like a fool

but I could not give up

Was it some kind of ghoul

that's got me messed up

Vague echos down the hall

seem to whisper my name

With voices ever so small

like a spark of a flame

Flickering my imagination

creating images in my mind

Adding to the frustration

the phantom shadow left behind

Was I going insane

was I out of my head

How could I explain

something that seemed to have left

I spoke to a doctor

who gave me some pills

I hired a contractor

to help cover the chills

That come around after dark

to find me alone

When the dog starts to bark

and the moon is full blown

Shining into my window

casting its shapes on the walls

But never the shadow

I cannot find it at all

I found a fortune teller

to help me retrace my steps

He was a strange kind of fella

but wasn't much of a help

Each night I set the scene

to recapture the moment

I don't know what it could have been

and I guess, I'll never know it

So, after months on the hunt

I gave in and surrendered

I guess I'll never confront

the shadow that entered

My bedroom that night

when I was almost asleep

Maybe my doctor was right

and it was really nothing

If it was or it wasn't

either way it won't matter

I've retired the manhunt

and took some pills with a cracker

The ones that help me to sleep

and quiet my imagination

It's begun to help keep

my head from dream participation

And that's when it happened

it appeared on my wall

It seemed to come back when

I wasn't looking at all

It smiled as I sat up

at the look of shock on my face

It raised up a cup

and toasted,

"here's to you mate

I wondered how long

you'd keep looking for me

and I knew all along

That I lived in your head

rent free -

"It was too easy man

you made it fun for awhile

It said in deadpan

"and you did it in style

Like a dog with a bone

you chased after me knowing

and I thought my cover was blown

when the moon started showing

I just wanted to say thank you,"

he said with a grin

as I wiped the sleep from my eyes

"It's been a pleasure my friend

and really, I empathized

When you thought that you'd lost your mind

I nearly lost it inside

The giggles I got watching

you looking around

I knew I had to give in

I knew I'd have to be found

"Now, go back to sleep

and forget what you saw

Before they take you for keeps

into that room down the hall"

Now, I don't know if it was real

if we had that conversation at all

But if you ever ask me again-

I didn't see nothin' at all