remember the night so long ago,
When I was a young thing, eight or so
It was a dark and stormy night
With lightning flashing bold and bright

I was young and so afraid
I clasped my hands and quickly prayed
Put on my pajamas and jumped in bed
Pulled up the sheet and covered my head

The lightning cracked and I heard a pop
A tree had fallen on our roof top
I jumped out of bed and ran down the hall
Thinking that Mom could fix it all

I couldn't stop shaking as hard as I'd try
Then I heard the sound of a baby's cry
I went to the window, looked out at the tree
But it was dark and I could not see

The lightning flashed and gave me a scare
I saw a black panther standing there
He stood on the tree trunk looking at me
And his big white teeth was all I could see

Away from the window Mom pushed without warning
Where we both watched and waited until the morning
The morning was calm-it had ceased to rain
We went back to the window and looked out again

The panther was gone, he was nowhere in sight,
He must have moved on sometime in the night
We heard on the news of the circus' rage
Someone had opened the door to its cage

When lightning flashes and thunder roars
I never go to the window to look out-of-doors
It no longer scares me 'cause I won't let it
But as long as I live, I will never forget it!