October 2008 goes to both JeanMorgan and Lucifina_Yara!!
JeanMorgan
Judge me, Burn me
A scream rings through
Through the town
Smoke is seen
Over the stone walls
A girl is bound
Robe binds her hands
And encircles her ankles
Sweat mixed with tears dominate her face
Fear and innocence preside in her eyes
She's shoved onto a platform
More rope binds her to a stake
A breeze blows through
Her gray worn dress fitters about
Her red hair whips her face
None listen
None care
Slowly
Deliberately
They lower the torch
The cheering stops
The crowd is quiet
"help..." the girl calls
She calls to her mother
She calls to her father
She calls to any who will listen
"please listen" she pleads
"I am no witch
I don't worship the devil
"I won't lie
I won't tell you I believe in your god
My goddess won't punish you
She won't avenge me"
The Christian leader stands
His robe pulled tight about him
"even on the stake
You deny the lord?"
She stands as tall as she can
"your god is but one form
One face
The Jewish god
Muslim god
Christian god...
The goddess...
They are all one!"
The flames roar
All around her
The smoke hides
Her face from view
Rain begins to fall
All that's left of the girl
Is her bones and her words
The fire dies
The rain falls
The earth quakes
The wind blows
The only thing changed
is the holy father
Who left that burning
A change'd man
_____________________
Lucifina_Yara
How I learned to read
I have always loved magic and stories of make believe
When I was young my parents would sit and read
They read and I was lost in the sweeping quests that sprang to life before my eyes
I poked and prodded, begged and cajoled to hear my favorite tale
But many times there was no time for them to sit and be persuaded
And so I would look at the pictures and remember, trying to capture that feeling
Struggling with the dream of creating it myself
Hard work, a lot of time and eventually the strange runes fell into place
And all by myself I could escape into far off lands that spread away before me
