Amethyst's Offerings

Today was a long sucky day in hell(which is what I call where I work).  I might have mentioned before, but if not, it’s a sewing plant that makes uniforms for the military.  a sweatshop of a general sort with a lot of rules in a “right to work” state, with little representation for issues that might arise.  I had problems with machine I use, the quality woman is new trying to prove a point, so I got handed some back(I pride myself on doing a good job so never get any back).  I didn’t get anywhere near what I usually get sewn done so that puts me behind for the week.  Typical Monday?  Probably, it’s just that after I’ve whined about  being tired, I thought maybe I would be cut some slack.  Yeah right. So off I went for some sustenance(cooked by someone else thankfully), hot shower and hot drink laced liberally with some spiced rum.  Yeah, I know, playing with fire, but I figured it couldn’t get any worse, right?  So I lie down to go to sleep..drifting deep because I am cold, tired and stressed.  I never even  saw the dream coming.  So here is what I remember of it.

The girl is walking along a path.  She is cold, wet and more than a little ticked off that she is out here.  The rain trickles down the neck of her cloak and she pulls it closer to her and pulls the hood up more firmly.  “Great” she thinks,” more rain. Just what I need”.  As the rain  begins more of a torrential deluge, she looks for a place where she can wait it out.  As she walks, she soon spies an opening in the hedgerow on the right, so she decides to take cover there.  As she moves into the space, she soon sees that it goes into a small clearing , secluded from the outside.  There is a small fire going, and she doesn’t give much thought as to who it belongs to or that she might be invading their space.  She is tired, and cold so sits close to the fire.  “How are you a chara?” asks a voice behind her.  Whirling around, she sees a woman, taller than herself but also in a cloak, dark as midnight, her voice smooth as honeyed syrup.  “I am well”, says the girl.  “I was seeking respite from the rains, and have availed myself of your fire.  I apologize if I am intruding”.  The woman laughs as she too steps closer to the fire.  “We were expecting you, so prepared the fire”, she says. “We?” thinks the girl.  Before she has time to wonder who else might be there, the wolf sits beside her.  “What do you think you are doing Cher?” he asks, using the familiar way she is usually addressed by those closest to her.  A little taken aback at his familiarity, she stammers..”I….I was waiting out the rains”, she said.  The wolf smiles.  “Has it been so long that you do not remember who I am?” he asks.  Looking into the wolf’s eyes, the girl sees him as he first appeared to her long ago on that river bank.  She smiles.  “I remember”, she says softly.  “It has indeed been a long time and I apologize for not knowing you at first”.  The wolf smiles back.  “I understand that things have been moving pretty fast for you, but it will slow down for a bit now”.  The girl breathes a sigh of relief.  “I was beginning to get seasick from all this spinning”, she told him.  The woman laughs.  “You created the spin..it’s how you work, always have”.  “Then I need to find another damn way to work”, the girl says a little crossly.  The woman and wolf both laugh.  “You would get bored if you didn’t have so many directions to choose from”, said the wolf.  “I would like to try.  Just. Once.” says the girl laughingly.  she props her hand under her chin.  “So why am I here on this path? sightseeing?  slumming?” “A little diversion.  A chance to look back over some things”, says Wolf.  “You needed a reminder that you aren’t really out in the cold and alone”.  “Inside I know that others are near, am just tired ….”, her voice trails off.  “Sit and rest” says Wolf. He reaches out to stroke her hair.  “I missed you petite amie”, he says.  The girl smiles. Yeah there is more to this dream.  Nope that is all for public consumption.
Let’s just say that I am in better humor than when I first came home and is giving thanks to the universe for providing things in a timely manner 🙂
DEUCES

I’ve written before about living in the south(Mississippi to be exact), but that growing up on military bases all around the world afforded me a greater view of humanity.  I have been reading commentary in the morning paper by various leaders, preachers.  Tomorrow is the 3rd Monday in January, so it is a national holiday celebrating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, renowned civil rights leader.  While on a national front, his accomplishments are well documented, it is his personal life that resonates with those who knew him best…his family.  Dr. King was a preacher, becoming co-pastor with his father over a small Baptist church in Atlanta that his grandfather had been pastor of, then moving on to his own church.  Quite a feat actually in a time where smart black men where looked at as suspect, and often harmed by those using hate and ignorance.  Was he perfect?  NO.  There were documents by FBI as well as biographers who suggest he had extramarital affairs.  Something he did not deny, but did admit to it being a hurtful situation.  His family however, loved him and overlook that fallibility in the interest to push his legacy of being outspoken and correct in his push for equality for all races.  I like to think that even in his office as minister, that he would also agree that civil rights applies to ALL humans.  Not just on race issues, but for faiths, sexuality and gender.   It was his outspokenness that helped shape our country into forming a basis for civil right laws that has continued to develop.  He even spoke on what he would really like to be remembered for:

I’d like somebody to mention that day that Martin Luther King Jr. tried to give his life serving others. I’d like for somebody to say that day that Martin Luther King Jr. tried to love somebody.

I want you to say that day that I tried to be right on the war question. I want you to be able to say that day that I did try to feed the hungry. I want you to be able to say that day that I did try in my life to clothe those who were naked. I want you to say on that day that I did try in my life to visit those who were in prison. And I want you to say that I tried to love and serve humanity.

Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major. Say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter

Now what I get from that?  He TRIED to do the right thing.  Was he successful?  Somewhat, although a great many strides of what he tried to accomplish was done after his untimely death.  The fact is, he could have gone on and become one of these major players from elaborate churches and ministries that one sees today, and filled his pockets, but he saw injustices, not just for his family based upon color, but for others as well.

A Russian proverb says, “Tell me who your friend is, and I will tell you who you are”.  That says a lot.  When Dr. King was working to motivate people to see past color, there was a wall of segregation built by people who used ignorance, and hate to spew their vile version of truth.  It was a rarity to see a mixture of people getting along.  I can remember things from those turbulent days that scared the hell out of me as a child. Who, after living on secluded, isolated bases where everyone was  treated the same no matter what because it was all affiliated with the military, had no idea of the hate in the “real world”.  My dad would be off to foreign places that we could not accompany him to, so we came back to Mississippi with its history of bad behavior well documented,  I saw first hand the ignorance of adults when the schools were forcibly segregated. Nobody taking into account that children could be harmed when buses were overturned, Molotov cocktails thrown , people beaten, angry, vile hate speech  tossed carelessly.  All those things left me with an impression.  It also left me with nightmares, as I’m sure it did others who had to experience it.  It also left me with a LOT of questions for my mother. “Momma, how come those people were angry that I was sitting with Patrice on the bus?” “Momma, why did they call her that word”(I am sure ya’ll know the one, but I will NOT allow it to appear in my personal space).”Momma, you said that we are all the same. Why do these people here think we aren’t?” “I play with others from all over the world, black, brown, yellow, white…is that wrong”? Yeah, my mother had a LOT of work to do in trying to explain the ignorance of others.  She had a lot of work to do trying to protect us counting the days until my dad returned and we could go back to that insulated world of the military.  Only it wasn’t ever quite that way after that year.   In truth, the school I attended in Ashland was desegregated because its located in a mostly rural county with lot of farming, but with forced busing, the kids from that school were going to be bused to predominately black school that was about 45 minutes away.  Make sense?  Not to anyone else either.  Parents(predominately white) decided they would NOT be forced to send their child that far from home from a school that they had grown up in as well as several generations of family.  Sometimes government in the guise of “vested interest” does some stupid things.  National guardsmen were sent into the fray.  What to do?  Close the school.  Teachers stopped showing up for work, parents didn’t send their children.  A forced vacation.  I was out of school for over 6 weeks. I was one of the fortunate ones, I loved to read, so kept up with things that way. Soon,  my dad was sent home from Korea and we moved to Oklahoma.  I could hear my parents sometimes speaking softly about the tensions still back “home” ,as it was always called.  It wasn’t until the next school term that things quieted down and the state upon looking at the dynamics of students, opened back up the doors of the school.  So what was learned from this?  That one does not truly know how deep feelings run about other’s rights until drama is brought to the forefront.  I was not allowed to go down the road to my friend Patrice’s house even though previously I had walked it often after we got off the bus.  Not because my mother would not allow it, but because her father would not.  My grandfather told me it was no longer “safe” for girls to be out alone.  I was a confused 8 year old, believe me. Now my grandfather and my friend’s father had sharecropped many years in that cotton field down below their homes.  Times were tense.  Grownups speaking in hushed, angry, tense voices.  I have no recollection of how that was solved.  I lost track of my friend.  I have no idea how her life turned out.  I hope that she is happy in hers.  That she too has family, is loved by her friends, maybe even her own little people to drive her to distraction as mine do at times.  What I wish most of all is that she too, having seen the horror of other people’s version of “truth” set out to be the change she wished to see in our world.  I try to set the tone in my home of respect for all(I try and save the judgments for those who refuse to educate themselves).  I also pass that on to the little ones.  I want their world to be mush as Dr. King envisioned it.  A world of equality for all, based upon love, compassion and respect for ALL people.  We are ONE race…HUMAN.

DEUCES

chair de la chair,
les os de l’os,
le balayage des dragons d’où ils errent.
Du brouillard à la vallée,
les montagnes à la mer,
des mystiques sages,
la connaissance est recherchée.

The song is often sung to me by Brin.  It’s the only words I have learned, although as often as I beg her to sing it to me, one would think that I would know it all.  Maybe it’s that those are the ones that seem to resonate with me.  Seeking knowledge from those who have always held it within their very being.  She sings it in a language that I don’t speak, but often sings it again in french which I do get, if it’s kept in a simple form.  It fills me with a peace that seems to permeate my soul.  I’m connected somehow even if I cannot remember how that came to be.   When I am stressed and seem to be unable to figure out what I am doing or where I am headed next, the song is sung, almost as a reminder that I am where I am supposed to be and going in a direction that is for me both spiritually fulfilling and familiar in its journey.  Even the tune of the music is enough to soothe me, as its hummed.  Like my spirit is seeing all that knowledge and love reflected back into it.  I’ve been out of sorts past few days, so those who love and have always cared for me use the tools they have at their disposal to pull me back into an upright position.  Yeah, almost back to center and that feels much better than that dizzying upside down feeling that seems to invade my very core.  It makes me feel terrible when I’m like that..the bones ache, my body temperature goes wonky,  I seem to stay cold with a bone-chilling death kind of cold that will not go away no matter how hard I try and warm myself.  My snark level..well let’s just say it goes straight to” mutherfucking life threatening, this bitch will kill you if you don’t run away very quickly” kind of mood.  So this week has been a little more stressful to say the least, and not just for me, but for those with the misfortune to encounter me in the throes of the “don’t even look at me let alone open your mouth to speak to me” kind of moods.  That I seem to have been righted on a day that most have silly superstitions about amuses me in its irony.  I have never had an trepidation about Friday the 13th, nor do I follow any superstition to will away any misfortune.  Timing is left up to when it’s needed…I dont concern myself too much at that.  I always seem to be able to find a place to set my feet at the appropriate time..usually about when I start to yell “ENOUGH”.   So today, I feel better than I have in a little while, and now back to the work at hand…..Friday the 13th..gotta love the humor ~GRINS~

DEUCES

Damn what a day!  It’s been a long ass week in hell and still not over, and everything that can make that job stressful happened pretty much.  On top of that it snows..like here in Mississippi we need or want that shit or the cold weather that came with it.  The kids will appreciate the time off, as Im sure with the icy bridges, for safety’s sake they will be out.  One would think that I would just relax and chill. I would do that if I didnt feel so off kilter.  I feel like Im walking by myself out in the middle of nowhere lately.  For what purpose I have no idea.  Drinking with the Baron tells me that there will be major doings soon…will he wait til I’m not quite so tired?  Not damn likely.  I feel like running to be consoled by Maman, who will welcome me as always, but I’m not a damn child so keep telling myself to suck it up and get on with it!  Ok, maybe I need to just take a day to myself and see where this is all headed.  But then that might be as relevant as asking which alcohol will get me drunker fastest.  Moot question if that is my intent, not to mention about as productive,lol.  I’ve learned that questioning just makes me crazy, and I probably am just tired and stressed from other commitments that I am feeling a bit overwhelmed and alone right now.   Yeah..I admitted it.  alone. I don’t usually mind it but today I do. Funny how pictures that reflect that flit through one’s mind huh?  Barren, dry, desert …Right in the middle of the dunes.  Why would I not find myself in familiar places that are also solitary in nature, such as the wheat field or swamp? Maybe because even in that solitude, I am not alone nor feel isolated.  Everyone has been running in different directions so there is a disconnect, especially on my end.  So while I’m not a child, I seek closeness from those who understand me best.  Here’s looking at a brighter tomorrow and no bloodshed for those around me while I sort myself out.  à votre santé!

DEUCES

So you ever get tired of the endless questions, conversations of how all pagans, Wiccans, Heathen are alike, all are witches, and from an “ancient” faith?  I roll my eyes and want to cut out of them as soon as they start, but I have witty friends and sometimes I hang around  just to watch them try and explain for perhaps the millionth time that unless one is following a specific path with set rules and guideline, that particular path isnt any more ancient than say the 1950’s(or yesterday).    There are no ancient tomes upon which to base one’s path on, unlike other more secular faiths.  There are a plethora of authors who have written things, and while some are knowledgeable in their works, the majority would fall under UPG(Unverified Personal Gnosis–personal experience or opinion).  So unless one is in a group with set rules made up by said group…we are definitely NOT all alike, nor are we all witches.  I shake my head at those fluff who claim that it’s all about love and light.  Really.  Is the world not balanced?  Is that “balance” you speak of in the universe depicted by the yin/yang, male/female , dark/light form of balance?  Then explain how in hades everything is one form?  To have all light without shadow is out of sync..out of balance and harmony.  Take a look at nature and see the shadow on the path as you walk in the sunlight.  I’m trying to make this as simple as I can because obviously some out there are not getting the concept.  And don’t look down your nose at those who want to toss in some chaos in their path.  Even nature destroys things in order to create.  I just want people to take some time and stop lumping everyone into the same mold.  We don’t fit!  It’s the reason why some of us don’t walk a secular path anymore, why we are the square pegs in the round holes. It’s why we often color outside the lines or take roads that very few are willing to travel.  It’s why there are those who put themselves out there trying to educate others.  Don’t quibble over labels that some feel the need to slap over themselves.  Most are just pretentious titles that aren’t worth the paper they print them on.  If you don’t have the education to go with that title, then drop it.  It just makes you look stupid, and believe me when I say that others can see that. I hear from some that they don’t get the dreams I sometimes write about based upon my path.  My response is “AND”? I write them down so that I have a place to go back and revisit some of the things I was told by those who guide me.  The blog is just a personal outlet to let off steam.  It’s not meant to educate everyone.  If you find something that helps..great..if not..kick rocks and move along.  Not everyone practices the same nor do we all have the same deities/entities in our lives as we walk these paths.   We aren’t stepford pagans, walking in lockstep with one another.  Believe me when I say that there are some I would not cross the street to have a conversation with because of fear of being inundated by a fluff ball between the eyes.  Yeah, I know it’s pretty judgmental of me, but seriously if you listened to them for yourself, You’d probably want brain bleach yourself.   It’s scary sometimes how simplistic and innocent  views are brought by some people come into this path.  It’s like one can simply say “I’m am(insert current path here) and be done with it.  Believing everything others tell them.  It’s how they get hurt…badly.  So what do I advocate?  EDUCATION.  Learn from those who have been on the path for some time.  Read authors that give you a historical insight into how things began and how its evolved.  Try things for yourself.  Experience is a damned good teacher.  Even if you “fail” you have learned a lesson.  Stop trying to be the same as someone else.  It’s nice to have an idol you want to emulate, but try to watch how they learn and use that instead of trying the “twin” routine.  Learn something new every day.  It keeps the brain active and one never knows what can be applied to the path you have chosen.  Stop thinking we are all the same.  Just as you have your own personal view of the world, so does everyone else.  We all come at things from our own perspective, so things will not all be the same..even in a coven setting.  One can have the same rules, learn the same things and still have a different view…That is the beauty of being you.  Enjoy and embrace that.

DEUCES

Ever have one of those days when it seems that you are beyond tired?  It’s an ache that goes beyond the surface of just having worked hard.  This is one of those days.  I came home from working and could feel the chill all the way to my bones.  No amount of hot water, tea or soup made me feel any better or warmer.  It’s like I am deep within the confines of a crypt dancing with the ghede and cannot for the life of me feel like I am in the land of the living.  So after the shower, tea and soup, I crawl into bed with more cove than I care to have and close my eyes.  I drift off and soon find myself sitting at a table speaking with baron himself.  “Jebus,” I chuckle to myself ruefully.  “Can this day get ANY more tiring?””Drink this”, he says sliding a glass in front of me.  After having drank with him on more than one occasion, I cock my eyebrow at him as if to say “yeah right”.  Baron laughs.  “I am only trying to help you Cher”, he says.  “You have been working hard and it’s been taking a lot out of you lately”.  I nod and pick up the glass. Sighing, I begin to drink.  Oh bliss! Sweet cinnamon, chocolate laced rum…Damn!  this is NOT his usual.  Surprised, I look at him.  He nods,” I got the recipe from Maman”, he winks.  I feel the warmth begin to envelop me.  “Maybe I should have gone there”, I said.  “But this is damn good”.  “I’m glad you like it”, he said.  “I did tell you I was going to stay close this time while we work.” Shit!  I had almost forgotten that little tidbit.  I roll my eyes, shake my head.  “So you did”.  “Finish the drink and go to sleep, Cher.  You need the rest”.  I think I am going to have to find all these ingredients and make some in the mundane I think.  I drift deeper into a rest that heals.  I awake feeling warmer, less tired and nowhere near that pain jarring cold that makes me want to curl up in a ball somewhere.  I forget sometimes that those I work with do care if I am able to stand to do the work required.  à votre santé

DEUCES

It was late when the traveler decided to stop and rest awhile on her journey.  The trip thus far, while arduous had been relatively uneventful.  She saw a light shining not far ahead and could hear the sound of raucous music blaring out into the night as if it was dancing its way, skipping across the wind swept road.  I’ll stop there, she thought.  She soon saw a sign swinging in the breeze, CROSSROADS INN. Interesting name she thought, chuckling to herself.   As she approached the door a couple obviously on their way to better things, swept out into the night, seemingly oblivious to her.  I’m glad someone’s having a good time, she laughed to herself.  She moved into the  inn, it was if she had walked into another time and place.  A huge fireplace was along one wall, filling the room with warmth and light, long wooden tables were in the center of the room, so that one ate and drank as a communal family.  There were a couple of smaller tables with short benches with tall backs affording the occupants that sat there some semblance of privacy from the others.  At the other end of the room was a long bar with stools, with a staircase leading to rooms upstairs if one wanted to rent a room for the night.  The traveler walked to the bar, looking around as she did so.  There was a band on a corner stage near the fire.  Not a big one, just small 5 piece, but they definitely could play. She continued onto the bar, sitting on a stool at the end.  The huge bartender with an immaculate white apron around his waist came forward.  “What can I help you with Miss”?, he asked.  “I’d like a room for the night”,she replied.  “I can do that”, he smiled. “Would you care for something to eat and drink”?”My wife makes a fine stew”.  The traveler pushed her cloak back from her head and sighed…last time she’d drank strange things, was printed indelibly on  her memory.  The barkeep waited patiently as if he knew her dilemma.  She smiled, “that would be nice”, she said.  Her stomach thanked her by growling its delight at the thought of warm food at last.  She turned to give the band a better listen, not recognizing any of the music they were playing but it had a haunting melody and a lively beat.  There were some dancing, and as one turned, she thought she recognized him.  Wait! she thought.  Where the hell is this place and why are Ghede dancing?  She looked back trying to see if she could get a better look, when the man turned smiling at her, grinning cheekily as if he understood her confusion.  She turned back to the bar, and the bartender placed a big  earthenware bowl of stew before her with freshly made bread and butter.  The smell was almost orgasmic for she hadn’t eaten for some time on this journey, so she smiled her thanks and began to eat.  She was so engrossed in her meal that she didn’t see him sit down next to her.  “Pardon me Madame, is this seat taken?”, he asked  She looked up at the familiar voice in surprise and shook her head no.  “The perhaps you will permit me to join you”, he said.  Still too surprised to speak, the traveler just nodded.  The Baron sat down.  “So how have you been Cher”? he asked.  The traveler shrugs, “I’m fine”. He frowned.  “I know that is the stock answer to the rank and file, because you refuse to let others know your truth, but that is a bullshit game with me and we won’t play it, d’accord”? The traveler is still in a state of shock somewhat, so she merely nods.  “Now, once more..”,says Baron ,softening his tone, “how have you been?”.  Softly, the traveler begins to tell of her recent days, of disturbing dreams, the lending of protection, elves with questions, doubts about what she is doing and why.  The Baron never interrupts, just listens although he already knows the truths that have been written.  When she is finished, he takes her hand, turning it over.  The sigil is still there, emanating its own energy, like a night light to guide her on her way.  “What does this tell you?”, he asked her.  “It tells me that I still have work to do, that even when I doubt, I still have to put my foot in front of the other and walk this path”, she said simply.  “I have doubts..its as if some lion is hunting, no…stalking me..waiting for me to fail”.  “Doubt is often painful when its removed”, says Baron,”it removes the facade that we have built up”.  “I’m not in a habit of making myself into something I am not..I hate fake shit”, says the traveler with a vehemence that startles her.  She looks up at the Baron with pale face, eyes wide.  “I mean no disrespect,” she says,”I have no idea where that even came from”.  Baron laughs loudly.  “Cher, you amuse me.  The emotions you keep bottled inside often overflow, whether its protecting those you love, those who piss you off or even when you deride yourself”.  “I am not offended by you.  We are friends, sommes nous pas?”.  She nods, then asks”so why are we meeting here”? The Baron smiled at her.  “I did not want to intrude when you went to sanctuary last, so I waited until you set out on your journey, and decided to wait until you were ready to rest a bit and we could sit and talk.  The traveler shivers a little thinking what the hell is coming next.  The Baron seeing the small frisson offers a bit of warmth.  “Barkeep!”, he says..”Two of my usual for us”, he smiles.  The barkeeper sets two glasses in front of them.  Dark rum, so spicy that one can smell the scent from where she sat even before picking it up to drink.  The Baron picks up her glass and hands it to her, then picks up his own.  He raises it in salute, “A votre sante “, he said.  The traveler raised hers as well,”À la votre”.  The Baron drains his glass, slamming it back down onto the bar, and sits looking at her.  Not to piss him off, the traveler does the same, causing her eyes to water and she chokes as the rum burns its way down.  The Baron laughs.  “You’ll get used to it.  Two more Barkeep”.  “Oh, hey…wait, I”, begins the traveler.  Too late.  Two more drinks sit on the bar.  Again the glasses are raised and salutations spoken, and the drinks are drained, glasses slammed down.  This continues  for several more rounds.  Finally the traveler tells the Baron, “I am way beyond my limit, something I dislike for various reasons, and at the risk of offense, I cannot drink another one”.  He smiles and agrees.  “Now, tell me…why are you trying to run so hard from those who seek you out”?  “I’m drunk and you want to be serious?”, she laughs.  “I’ve often found that alcohol often loosens inhibitions to the truth”, he grins mischievously.  She laughs.  “Okay then…I run away because it’s a habit.  If I don’t stand out then I am left alone.  I write to please myself, or tell myself I do, anything I say to others…well, some listen, others don’t”.  Baron looks deep into her eyes.  “Cher, those with knowledge have responsibility to speak whether others listen or not, d’accord?”She nods, “I’ve always felt so”. He continues. “It’s human to doubt one’s self, your abilities, especially with a history that does not have much affirmation in it”. “but you would not be who you are today, knowing what you know, who you know, if you were not more than capable at doing this work”. “I feel that what I know would fit on the head of a pin”, she laughingly tells him.  The Baron throws back his head and laughs loudly.  “Cher, what you know would fill tomes, and yet there would be still much to learn”.  She leans her head on her hand , propping up on the bar.  The spiced rum is having its effect.  “So…now that you’ve heard what I’ve been up to, what am I doing next?” she asks Baron.  He laughs, “Now you know that would not be fair if I were to tell you everything”.  She jerks upright.  “Fair! ya’ll have some crazy ass views on that.  Is it fair to let my ass hang out in the wind for anyone and everything to take pot shots at it? Is it fair to feel as if everything I do is scrutinized by others and dissected to see where I’m wrong?  Is it fair to be expected to share what I know with some who do not reciprocate? And finally is it fair to expect me to just accept this shit without question?” DEAD SILENCE.  At the realization that she, in her drunken state has just yelled at one who could do so much damage, causes her to put her hand over her mouth wishing for all the world it was duct tape to keep it from opening yet again, and causing all the blood to run from her face.  “I……I…..I am sorry”, she begins stammeringly.  The Baron takes her hand in his once more, tracing the sigil with his finger, lingering on the crossroads pictured there.  “Cher,”he begins softly,”I know things have been difficult, and that you aren’t used to the drinks tonight, so I will excuse the tone, but will address the concerns, because as I said, truth does come out”. He lifts his head, and the band goes back to playing, others continue their conversations.   “Life is not fair, nor is what we ask of you exactly fair, but your destiny, your path…that is why you are here.  There will always be people looking for you to fail, seeking a way to see if what you are about is truth.  The work will always attract those who would deter it, but you have ample protections, and back up to rely on.  Those who are chosen have plenty to do, and no it’s not always fair, but it is what it is.”While the Baron has been speaking, he has continually drawn and redrawn the sigil, always lingering on the crossroads, the traveler looks at him.  “I’m sorry I yelled, and its not that I don’t appreciate the opportunity to further things, but sometimes it an be damn tiring”Baron, still holding her hand, smiles”I agree Cher, it can be damn tiresome”.  “But it can also be damn rewarding, oui?” She smiles and agrees.  “I do get to meet the most interesting folks, I’ll admit”, she laughs.  Baron smiles.  “I am going to stick closer for a bit, Cher, I think you can use some guidance and some help from one without judgement”.  “Oh Jebus”, she thinks to herself, “this has the earmarks of an all out witchfuck”.  Saying nothing, she just nods.  The Baron comes to his feet, “Let me help you upstairs, you need to rest”, he says.  So they move toward the staircase where a room awaits the traveler.  “Thank you for your kindness and understand when I wasn’t quite so polite”, says the traveler.  “It will not be the last time there will be outbursts, Cher, nor minor disagreements.  I am not someone that you have to walk on eggshells with.  A child of ghede knows this.  It is your human, polite company side that tells you to keep worrying and apologizing”, he laughs.  She laughs with him.  “I guess so”. The traveler yawns, suddenly feeling extremely tired.  “Here is your room, cher, sleep well and  we will speak again soon”.  Baron kisses her gently on the forehead, opens the door and propels her into the room.  Bonne nuit”. And with that the door closed.  The traveler falls upon the huge bed that is the softest feather mattress she has ever experienced.  “This is like sleeping on a cloud”, she thinks to herself drowsily.  Smiling, she drifts off to sleep, secure in the knowledge that this are as they should be even if she has no idea what that is exactly.

DEUCES

A lot has been spoken on the plagiarism of other people’s works.  I saw a site today while perusing the net and it has many Pdf’s on it of other people’s books.  There was a contact button, so I sent an email saying: