Pa vo TheWe s t onbi r tJ our nal
The Editorial – our first Winter edition. It is a great honour to introduce you to our first Westonbirt journal, aptly titled Pavo. I am sure some of you will, from the clues in our glorious front page by Isabella, have gathered why. Nonetheless, I ask you to kindly let me elaborate: The etymology - there is a very thoughtful article on this topic within these pages - of ‘pavo’ originates with the Ancient Greek and Latin for ‘peacock’. The clear connection to Westonbirt here is, of course, our beloved, bellowing Bertie. My devotion to this title however, stems primarily from its astronomical history in which Pavo is the constellation of the peacock and furthered labelled a ‘spectroscopic binary’. This marvellous term summarises when two stars reflect so much light across one another that they appear to be a grander constellation as a whole… I cannot therefore think of a better word to reflect the ethos of Westonbirt. A small - but growing as we speak! - system of stars; where the pupils, staff and families attached all believe that we are a part of something uniquely special and where it is always worth reaffirming one another’s ‘light’. Forgive me for such mawkishness (can I call it poetic?!) but I do hope, with this ethos in mind, you enjoy seeing some of this ‘light’ in this first issue. I am deeply proud of all the pieces and would like to express my gratitude and admiration for all the contributors for their courage and creativity. In times like these, with 2020 as woeful, challenging and unique as it has been, I am
also drawn to exploring various Eastern and Western mythologies, religions and spiritualities and the pattern in these beliefs of what the peacock itself represents. Its myriad of colours and shapes in the displayed tail as a reflection of a thousand eyes openly gazing at the world, signifying wisdom, compassion and diversity – all infinitely valuable and necessary to our happiness and growth as individuals and global communities. I also must discuss the celebration of the alchemical symbolism of the peacock, where it is connected to the production of rainbows as an iridescent light in darkness… I ask you to think of that as a metaphor for hope and to see both hope and wisdom in Pavo and in Westonbirt. Before I conclude and you begin to peruse the thoughtful and creative pages ahead, I would like to emphasise to all our pupils that Pavo, like all literature and art should be, is not exclusive. Please do let me know if you are interested in contributing for the Spring issue. Miss Sheehan, Head of English “Lock up your libraries if you like; but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind.” Virginia Woolf, A Room of One’s Own Note: I took the above photo on an early morning walk around the grounds in the wintry mist – you will see later in the pages a beautiful painting of these inspiring grounds. I also must request, dear readers, you forgive my scientific paraphrasing in this piece: I am by no means an expert in Astronomy or Alchemical History, merely an enthusiast!
Contents Non-Fiction:
Reviews Book review by Eka I, Year 12 pages 4-5 Film review by Carys J, Year 11 page 8 Documentary review by Emily B, Year 8 page 11-12
Articles Etymology by Sophie B, Year 12 pages 6-7 Climate change by Olympia T, Year 11 pages 9-10
Fiction:
Short story by Lena S, Year 13 pages 14-16 Poems by Grace P, Year 13 pages 18-19 Poem by Abi K, Year 12 page 20 Poem by Paul Holland page 21
Artwork:
Front cover by Isabella B-B, Year 9 Social Dilemma by Nini L, Year 11 page 13 Character study (Harry Potter) by Isabella B-B, Year 9 page 22 Westonbirt Arboretum by Paul Holland page 23
Books change us. Books save us. I know this because it happened to me. Books saved me. So, I do believe through stories we can learn to change, we can learn to empathize and be more connected with the universe and with humanity.’ Elif Shafak Shafak, a Turkish-British writer, public speaker and women’s rights activist, is known for her outstanding style and voice, which is unique for each novel. Controversial and critically acclaimed novelist, who does not shy away from exploring problematic themes and being expressive, once again displays the power of author’s voice in her ninth novel – ‘Honour’. The novel focuses on three generations of the Turkish-Kurdish family – Toprak, and follows the story from Istanbul to London, exploring codes and perceptions of Honour which are ultimately destructive for them. ‘If London were a confection, it would be a butterscotch toffee - rich, intense and traditional. Istanbul, however, would be a chewyblack-cherry liquorice - a mixture of conflicting tastes, capable of turning the sour into sweet and the sweet into sour.’ The skillfully written and crafted story entails a number of twists and turns, enigmas and intricacies of the characters’ destinies and makes the readers hold their breath, while imbibing the ambitious narrative. How does it feel to be marginalized by traditions and be pulled back by past? How far can these traditions take people? How can the person deal with internal conflict, especially if it’s deeply influenced by the moral perceptions of the society? What can one do in the name of ‘honour’? This book has made me ponder deeply, provoked a stream of thoughts and stayed on my mind ever since I flicked the first page. There is something peculiar, special and indescribable about the way Shafak can engage the readers and craft the story with so many feelings and emotions….
"In the evenings, we listened to the shouts, the cries, the swearing. In the morning, we went on with our lives as usual. The entire neighbourhood pretended not to have heard, not to have seen." Writes Shafak before she starts the story. The novelist dedicates the book to ‘those who hear, those who see.’ ‘Honour’ draws attention to the taboos, people still prefer to whisper about, scared to speak up, in case it pulls the trigger. Yet, Shafak is not afraid to dive into the intricacies and complexities of traditions and human relationships and use her voice to make a change. The word ‘Honour’ in Turkish (Onur) is a meaningful and strong word – often associated with nationalism and patriotism. However, this name is given only to boys, who are considered to carry the concept of honour in Turkey: ‘you could call your child ‘Honour’, as long as it was a boy… Women did not have honor. Instead, they had shame. And, as everyone knew, Shame would be a rather poor name to bear.’ It is worth mentioning, that the name of the book had to be altered depending on which country it went to (in Italy it was published as ‘The House of Four Winds’; in Turkey – Iskender). It is interesting to focus on the concept of the main theme of the book – honor, and highlight how the perceptions can vary from one culture to another, from one country to another. The story starts with Esma Toprak, who is about to set off for Shewbury Prison to meet her brother, who is being released from prison over a decade later. A decade from the tragic night. The narrative goes back and forth, and as a parallel to Esma’s narrative, we get to read the story of her mother and her twin sister. Growing up in Turkey, the twins - Pembe Kader (Pink Destiny) and Jamila Yeter (Enough Beauty) are impacted and wrapped in
the customs of their faith. Women are immensely impacted by Islamic tradition and are deprived of social powers. Soon, we are introduced to Adem, who loves Jamila, but marries Pembe in the name of honor. Pembe moves to London with him, while Jamila stays in the village to become the midwife and serve her religion. Pembe and Adem have three children – rebellious Iskender, feminist Esma and naïve Yunus. As Adem leaves his wife, Pembe is left alone, facing the harsh reality. This character tries to make the sense of the world circling around her. She then meets Elias and develops an affair with him, which takes place away from the children’s eyes. However, Pembe’s son, Iskender, who has to deal with his internal conflict and struggles to negotiate his male identity, gets the sense that he must be the one, who defends the family’s honor, thus making crucial decision. Indeed, tradition screams that Iskender is the head of the family, often referred to as ‘sultan’ and therefore has the responsibility to regulate Pembe’s life. Understanding gender roles and the expectations that come with them is a key aspect of this book. We get to know Iskender’s story and his reflection on what has happened while he is in prison. Little pieces come together, as we gain insight into his experience of loyalty and betrayal, early childhood memories of being unprotected from public humiliation of circumcision… All the characters and their stories come into the full circle. The intertwining of destinies engages the readers with the novel and explains how the Topraks’ understanding and notion of honour leads to the tragedy and downfall. Violence, alcohol and gambling addiction, beliefs, exploration of feelings of guilt and innocence, loyalty and betrayal, love and hate, honor and shame – ‘Honour’ by Elif Shafak is a powerful novel
Etymology and the Beginnings of our Words etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ (n.) the study of the origin of words and the way in which their meanings have changed throughout history Every single one of the words we use every day has a long and rich background. They have developed, merged changed throughout history, and make up the English Language as we know it today. They evolve over centuries through a random and spontaneous affair that leaves them teeming with irregularities, quirks. The study of word origins doesn’t exactly sound like the most interesting subject, but it can actually open your eyes and help you really understand the things you are saying and can help us communicate better. The word etymology in itself is a great example. It derives from the Greek ‘etumos', which means ‘true’. You can see the link between the origin and what we use today, thus why we chose to develop it and include it in our language. This example, however, is a fairly straightforward one. Here are some more unconventional ideas to wrap your head around: - Quarantine: A very fitting lexis, quarantine came from the 14th century at the time of the Black Death, and was derived from the Italian ‘quaranta gironi’ meaning 40 days. This was the rule that incoming ships should isolate on nearby islands for 40 days before being allowed to come onshore. At least our quarantine only lasts 14 days… - Nightmare: The term ‘mare’ in nightmare doesn’t actually refer to a horse as most would suspect, but is actually is the name for an evil spirit from Germanic folklore. The spirit would sit upon a sleeper’s chest and cause them to have bad dreams. - Sarcasm: Derives from the Greek word
‘sarkazien’, meaning to tear flesh, which metaphorically is very fitting, to wound someone with your words. - Lemur: If you directly translate the word from latin, it actually means ‘spirits of the dead’. This name was coined due to their nocturnal lifestyle and erratic behaviour. ‘Lemures’ refers to specters or ghosts that were exorcised during the Lemuria festival in ancient Rome. - Muscle: To Ancient Romans, flexed bicep muscles looked mouse-like in form, thus naming them ‘mus’. it’s imaginative, I’ll give them that. - Mortgage: Splitting the word into two, ‘mort’ means dead and ‘gage' means pledge, therefore creating a word meaning death pledge, A.K.A a mortgage. Lovely. - Assassin: During the Crusades, members of a Muslim sect would smoke hasish and then murder leaders of the opposing sides. They went by the name ‘hashishiyyin’ which meant hashish-user. The mispronunciation of the word meant it eventually turned into assassin. - Robot: The word comes from the Czech ‘robota’ which means forced labour, and was coined in K. Čapek’s play, R.U.R, ‘Rossum's Universal Robots’. It was a product of the
European system of serfdom by which a tenant's rent was paid for in forced labor or service. - Now, to develop a more socio-political understanding about language, you must know that world origin is also confusingly gendered. For example, some languages are natural gender languages, such as English. These are characterised by pronouns and nouns which denote the gender of animals and people. - Romance languages however, such as Italian or French are grammatically gendered, placing all nouns into gender categories, which don’t always necessarily align with the natural gender. In Spanish for example, the word ‘la casa’, meaning house, is a feminine noun. Who decided that a house would be female? Who decided that the word for sink would be masculine? There is little consistency in the genders of words across languages, and the way that our speech effects our internalised patriarchal hierarchy is intensely controversial. The existence of ‘marking’, the creation of an addition or contrastive meaning using a modifier which tells you something about the origin term’s meaning exacerbates this point. Phrases such as ‘family man’ or ‘male nurse’ are coined because it is subversive of them to exist, and shows you that words such as nurse means woman. Language that has bias towards a particular gender reflects and upholds archaic pre-existing social characteristics. It demonstrates the still prominent presence of sexism, yet the irony is that gendered language does no one any favours. Men don’t feel empowered when people use a male pronoun to describe something, nevertheless we still persist. - Why? Why when we have analysed language in such a meaningful and precise way do sex and semantics go hand in hand? - In Miller’s & Swift’s 1981 book ‘Handbook of Non-Sexist Writing’, they explore how the term ‘man’ is a false generic, and is not applicable when describing something as the word has lost any indication of gender. In the handbook, they write “Knowing that he
and his can be gender neutral, I shall no longer feel there is an odd image filtering through something like: ‘The average American needs the small routines of getting ready for work. As he shaves or blowdries his hair or pulls on his panty- hose, he is easing himself by small stages into the demands of the day.’…How liberating common sense can be.” This quote highlights the desensitisation of masculine pronouns and their overuse. ‘He’ has become and interchangeable piece of lexis and can arguably be used to describe anything. Finally, please understand that this analysis is not a consequence of ‘radical 2nd wave feminism’ as some may suggest, but rather just a small jest at the nonsensical way we talk, and how reluctant we are to change something that only came around due to evolution. We always have to be critical of the world as nothing is perfect, and we as people would never improve. Hopefully something in the article has inspired you even just to think more carefully about how you speak, and even sparked a longing for amends. -
Film: Just Mercy
‘Just Mercy’, produced in 2019, is a film written based on a true story about a lawyer who has recently left university, travels to Alabama and tries to defend those who were accused of crimes they haven’t committed. Throughout the film he experiences racism and legal issues regarding the cases he takes on. One of the main cases, and the first case he took on, is defending a black man named Walter McMillan who was wrongly accused of murdering an 18-year-old girl. The lawyer, Bryan Stevenson, in ‘Just Mercy’ is a lawyer and social justice activist in real life. He has helped to save many lives due to his passion and motivation to equalise humanity and prove evidence that certain prisoners are innocent or where cases have been misunderstood or prejudiced. This was how he became the founder/executive director of The Equal Justice Initiative which provides prisoners and poor people with a legal representation that is effective if they have been wrongly accused or convicted. ‘Just Mercy’ shows, in a more rounded way but still in detail, Stevenson’s thought process and passion for his job and this movement that he wants all to be aware of. The film allows the viewers to have their own view on the case but also gives evidence and proof that prejudice is something that people of a high class and status don’t think twice about in day to day life however when looking at aspects of McMillan’s life in particular, it’s clear to see that there are still many who suffer and have to fight for their own freedom and justice, often alone. Stevenson seeks help and evidence but was dismissed multiple times, no one was willing to assist him in giving McMillan freedom due to his being black. Racism is portrayed in an extremely admirable way to raise awareness and show those viewers who potentially are naive and oblivious to these sorts of biased cases.
In my opinion, the true story this film recreates and portrays is very important and gives a message that the audience should take away with them and think about when going about their daily life. The film takes the viewer through each clear stage of the case with emotion and in detail and depth. Looking at the narrative arc of the film, the case is introduced at the exposition, ready for the rising action which consists of Stevenson attempting to prove McMillan’s innocence amongst other aspects. The beginning of the film is an introduction - mainly just to Bryan Stevenson and his background as a newly graduated lawyer which implies he too is naive to some of the flaws and inequalities of some of these cases. He quickly learns and adapts to his surroundings and is immersed into these unfair realities. Due to his background, race and upbringing, he is sadly used to the lack of equality however, in my opinion its clear to see that he finds it hard to see why or how people could be treated so unfairly just because of their class or race. This happens during the rising action and the climax of the film, due to his heading up the court case and taking on McMillan’s fight for innocence. Viewers may admire how the producers and writers give them morals to think about and aspects of the film they must have an opinion on. Some viewers may, for example, not be educated enough to know about the politics and sensitivity behind the story and so may make decisions that perhaps could cause argument or debate due to there being so many aspects we need to get to grips with and understand. Overall, ‘Just Mercy’ is a truly fascinating film showing racism and prejudice at its worst which should have an effect on the readers in their day to day life: about how they view people differently or treat someone with a higher respect than another.
CLIMATE CHANGE Climate Change Climate change has been an increasing concern today, and even though CVOVID19 has shaken up society, the looming threat of global warming has not and will not go away any time soon. However, all hope is not lost and by spreading knowledge, acting quickly, and changing lifestyles, we can save this planet. What is climate change? In simple terms, climate change is a result from the greenhouse effect; where the earth’s atmosphere traps the sun’s energy in a ‘blanket'. Gases like Co2 contributes to this, yet, with all the gasses released from industry and agriculture, more energy is trapped, increasing the temperature. With the burning of fossil fuels and oil after the industrial revolution humans significantly added to these amounts of carbon dioxide. And only the late 19th Century did scientists first start to argue that human emissions changed the climate, but took until 1958 to fully confirm it. The impact Because of the increase in temperature, ice caps are constantly melting, resulting in the polar bears feeding season to reduce, and other animal populations to diminish with the loss of their habitat. Between 2005 and 2015 it has been said that the
average sea level has increased by 3.4 inches (above the 1993 average) per year. Not only does the effect animals’ habitat, but ours as well, with the sea levels rising, fresh water marshlands, low lying cities and island are flooded with sea water. Another huge issue with climate change is the forest fires. Even though it does not directly cause them, it is a major factor in increasing the risk and extent of the wildfires. With the earth becoming increasingly warm, and dry, a small spark could ignite a massive fire lasting for days. This sadly contributes further to the issue of greenhouse gases, resulting in an endless cycle, that is hard to stop. Evidence shows that the 20st warmest years on record have been in the past 22 years, 2015-18 being on the top 4. How to prevent this Points made from an expert:
•
• Don’t travel (planes) • Don’t have kid • Don’t eat meat Don’t own a car
These 4 very controversial points were made by an expert in climate change. It shouldn’t be fair that our generation can no longer travel, have as many kids as we want, or eat meat, as the previous generations have. But the point being is that you don’t have to agree with it however, when it comes down to saving the planet these are the extremes we have to go through. You could personally use renewable energy, plant more trees, and have an electric
CLIMATE CHANGE car, but this will only work with the whole world onboard. The problem being all mouth and no trousers, and especially politicians who say they are going to do something but don’t. Greta Thunberg is a great example of someone regardless of their age standing up to what they think is right, and has even stood up to Donald Trump! Overall, it is very hard to change the way we live, but we can all play our part and be optimistic. Every little thing we do will make a difference. And remember don’t put the heating on, wear a warm sweater!
Don’t worry polar bears can swim Let’s make humanity great again, they said, We’ll strive, succeed, And work together, all as one All you have to do is agree and carry on
Don’t worry when sea levels rise, We’ll build barriers of plastic of significant size, Don’t worry polar bears can swim, They said…and moved on…
“But I’ve learnt that no one is too
small to make a difference.”
How wrong we all were about the qualities that were self-righteous, Inflicted self-interest, That were not going to guide us, But instead destroy us
Review of ‘The Social Dilemma’ The Social Dilemma is a brilliant documentary enlightening us about the darker and more dangerous side of social media. With alarming depression, anxiety and suicide statistics of young girls, this documentary really highlights the issues that we have unconsciously become accustomed to. I would really recommend this film for everyone whose social media is an integral part of their lives, or something that you may use every day. If you’re somebody who doesn’t use social media, you may think that what happens on there doesn’t affect you. It does. This is because so many people are using it around you, especially famous figures like Donald Trump, it’s constantly popping up on the news. Did you know that fake news spreads SIX TIMES FASTER than real news on Twitter? But it doesn’t have to be someone famous, lots of people around school use Tik Tok or Instagram, and these are just as problematic. Wikipedia is one of the few platforms online that gives everyone the same information, wherever you are, whatever your search history. Imagine that Wikipedia said: “We’re going to give each person a different, customised definition, and we’ll be paid by people to do this.” Wikipedia would be spying on you, it would calculate “what’s the thing I can do to get this person to change a little bit on behalf of some commercial interest?” And then it would change the entry. Can you imagine that? Well you should, because that’s what’s happening on Facebook or YouTube or any of these platforms. In this way, I think that the Social Dilemma is fantastic, however I wish that they’d touch on some more positives just to show more of a
comparison and a balance between the good and the bad. Having said that, almost every point makes you question everything that’s happening online, whether it’s to do with you or someone else. A book recommended in the film is ‘Ten arguments for deleting your social media accounts right now’ by Jaron Lanier. In no way am I suggesting that you delete your social media accounts right now, but just understand the meaning of the book and what this film is about in a nutshell: Advertisers are the customers, we are the ones being sold, if you are not paying for the product then you are the product. All the social media apps like google or Facebook are competing for your attention. How much time you spend on their app. It’s the gradual, slight, imperceptible change in your behaviour & perception that is the product - that’s the only way to make money from you, by changing the way you think, the things that you do, essentially who you are. It’s a gradual change. They sell certainty, they have to have great predictions, to do this, they need a lot of data. Everything that you do online is monitored, every action that you take is carefully monitored and recorded, like what photo you look at and how long you look at it for
“There are only TWO industries that call their customers ‘users’; illegal drugs and software.” – Edward Tufte The Three Main Goals of Advertisers: • •
•
Engagement Goal: To drive up your usage, keep you scrolling/online. Growth Goal: To keep you coming back and inviting as many friends and getting them to invite more. Advertising Goal: To make sure that while all of that is happening, they’re making as much money as possible.
These goals are each powered by algorithms whose job is to figure out what to show you, to keep the numbers going up. I don’t want to give you so much information so that if you watch the film, you already know a lot, but here are 3 words that I think of as key: Manipulation, Psychology, Deceit. The developers spoken to on the film, said that even though they knew what was going on behind the scenes, they still couldn’t control their usage. They were falling prey to their own inventions. They were aware of what was happening but couldn’t resist. Almost all of them also wouldn’t let
their own children on social media, just a bit of food for thought for you… Overall, this film has really helped me take care online, and I would highly recommend it to you. I rate this film 4 and a half stars.
Something Unburied It began, at first, with silence and nothing
would seem friendly if not for her surging
to see. A type of darkness one is
sense of worry. Everything was out of
surrounded by at night in their room,
place, as though it was all a perfect
when even their silhouettes become
replica of the original scene, but only this.
fiendish beasts. All our protagonist hears
Only a double, a farce. A face she
is her sporadic breathing that carries
recognised- but didn’t know- greeted her,
across this space, a drowning sort of
human features blocked out from her
sensation. Then her heart is next,
mind like a criminal on television. A
cantering against her ribcage, preparing
stranger she once knew. Like she was in
her to run. Fight or flight, she wants to
some dark fiction, a story of her making
escape, but all is still. She was alone,
in her sleep. Censored so perfectly,
frozen in time. She felt like an essence of
hiding the truth from her. A contrast
whatever had made her what she was, a
from before, the hollering in the room
mist of a human, just complex thoughts
was almost unbearable now, it felt like
with no being. It was then when a blur
her brain was a muscle all of a sudden,
made itself present, a sound other than
pulsating
her own anxiety, something like being
sensation. The voice’s owner smiled (or
underwater. Then, dotted lights filled her
maybe it was a frown, as though this
peripheral, patches of sights and sounds
person knew something she didn’t, it felt
like a strobe light of memory all
like she could no longer comprehend
unfolding until she could see where she
emotions). “You sure you don’t want to
was. She was waking up, that’s what was
go home? Pretty sure I’m sober enough to
happening. Awake in the middle of a
get you home.”
party, screams and laughter colouring the walls.
in
agony
at
every
new
She didn’t seem to be able to find her voice, throat clogged by the sheer idea
“Jolyn! Hey, are you okay? You look
that whatever was occurring was truly
dead, no offense.” A voice drawled out
abnormal.
from behind her, crude hands gabbing
carefully leaving the conversation by
her by the shoulder in a manner that
walking to the window. The sky was a
Instead,
Jolyn
nodded,
canvas of contrast, both day and night,
her, partners idly swaying away from the
yet nothing at all. There was no sun, nor
urgency. Blissfully unaware of what was
moon, and even then there were patches
unfolding.
of fusing light and dark, in a limbo of time. There were no memorable figures outside, nothing besides stumps of rocks pointing out of the ground like jagged teeth. Turning around to expect the noise and lights to overwhelm her senses, Jolyn was greeted with naught, like she had been alone all along. Only the remnants of the fun night remained, pools of dust lathered the ground with an occasional cup or stain. There was this sense of cold that tingled her skin, so confused as to why there was only trails left in place of people, why she was left to haunt this room.
“Jolyn! Hey, you okay?” There it was, just like before, the headless figure, someone she’d seen before she was born into this dream. “What’s wrong? Don’t you want to stay with us? We invited you here, aren’t you glad?” Silence. The crowd grew silent, necks twisting and writhing towards
the
girl.
All
waiting.
All
expecting her to speak, to answer them how they wanted, a hivemind of forgotten shadows never to be released from their slumber. Would this be how she would end up if she stayed? Her fate wasn’t sealed yet, she believed, not while she could still think for herself, not until she
For a moment it all subsided. Over like it
stopped believing in every memory that
never happened, tossed under the bed to
still anchored her sanity. She wasn’t
never be retrieved. But in the world Jolyn
made for stooping below people, never
had stumbled into, it would seem like this
willing to accept a loss even then. That
was not the case. Just like this all began,
was her strength, that was her weakness.
it spiraled back to the beginning, blood rushing when she suddenly noticed how the room flooded back into life. Again there was laughter, again people were laughing. Then it began to get difficult to tell between crying and screaming, when the music drowned out any dread like a drug, a sedative for the people around
Without a second to consider what was happening, she clawed through the crowd that barricaded her passage. She searched, wild and seething with hysteric rage at the thought of being trapped. She groped any door she caught her eye on, tugging animalistically, kicking, pushing. There were only three doors, each were
the same. The crowd watched as if Jolyn was the evening entertainment, some sort of windup she had no idea of. Perhaps this was it, was she simply a game-piece for Fate? Was some celestial being sitting above the wretched ceiling, watching her panic unravel? How cruel, to be stuck in a dream like this, to have to hold out until the morning. There was a conveniently placed clock on the wall, a sight that seemed mocking when she noticed it never changed, simply ticking in the background when the rest of the room was gushing with noise. No matter how long she would have to remain here, looping the laughter, the pounding, the putrid smell of rotten floorboards, she would fight. Jolyn was certain of this, more certain than anything in her current situation would allow.
She
would
crawl
past
the
phantoms and cadavers of friends that she would never know again. Even when she began to notice the stumps of rock outside were headstones, singing out their epitaphs.
A Game of Cat and Mouse Some days I am a lion. Or a mountain cat. I'm waiting, waiting, waiting and then I pounce and blood dribbles down my chin as an antelope or a sheep or some timid thing cracks and shatters in my jaw. Other days I am a mouse. It is curious to be a mouse. Flitting though streets and around corners But too stupid to see a house cat prowling behind the couch. Those days I am jumping at every noise, Nibbling on some yellow cheese and thenSNAP I am wriggling and then, I am still. Today I feel like a mouse, but the trap hasn’t caught me yet And so, I flit to and fro around the house Mother is in the kitchen and she is humming like usual Sipping on wine, thinking about what vegetables make you big and strong Today I do not need to be big and strong. Today I am a mouse.
The POLITICAL Wife 'Tea?' His large hands wrapped around two mugs. I wondered what made his bared teeth political. And I realized he was forever knee deep in status and power Coaxing the public for more And frowning when he was forced to admit to abusing it, Clawing at the mouths of other organizations Whereas I was merely a pitiable vision of a docile woman Lying stuck where he buried me in the backyard. He was using explosive hand gestures that made me flinch As if nothing was expressive enough to portray his gluttony at winning another case '…and I stared at the Jury right in the eyes and I said...' I shifted in my seat tugging my knees to my chest, He watered me nightly but by dawn I was parched And he could not care less. '...the defense attorney was useless though, you could do better and that’s saying something.' He was using his court voice. Loud and boastful. And when his claws got stuck in their lips-lord did their mouths open. Opening and closing as if they couldn't get enough YOU SCARE ME But of course I never said that, I prefer to leave things to simmer and multiply. '…after all,' he said as the kettle began to whistle, 'all this language is only designed to make lies sound truthful.'
The Old Key Rusted, neglected, forgotten long abandoned in the drawer disregarded and obsolete, languishing for three score years and more; once held in high esteem treasured in times of yore a guardian of long kept secrets now unseen behind the defunct door. Once the perfect partnership highly polished and full of grace! now separated with a faux faรงade standing in its place. If only it could speak what wonderous stories it would tell bringing forth songs and laughter! Along with sadness that befell
A simple and humble object there is more to this than meets the eye, this key can unlock the magic of days long gone by. With a chink of light comes a ray of hope at last an open hand, is this the chance? To reveal secrets from the past.
PELOPONNESE MONASTERY Glimpsed at last from paths probing steeply Into the wooded slope above, it emerges, A stone and timber barnacle clinging Tenaciously to the cliff – a monastery Filled with ancient faith, clasping everything close, Cave-bound chapel packed with gloomy icons, Cells looking out to gorges thick with trees, A prayer room, a balcony, bells and chimes; A world within a world; of the world, yet above it. At some fixed points on the clock their attention is needed; The gardens watered, the libraries dusted, the paths swept. A silent mime of righteousness, itself a gathering of prayers. A hidden folk moved daily by the unquestioned, Handed-down knowledge that what they daily do Remains after all these tortuous years of outside progress The most important task of all: to pray for you and me, To save our souls, nudge us towards our rightful place Among heaven’s hosts – and thereby save the world. Free of earthly cares they dwell like ancient totems, Enclosed within this unreal, suspended basket of hope, Withdrawn, tranquil, safe through all the swirling centuries.
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