Happy Monday!
The title neatly lays everything out, so I think I'll do things in that order.
Excuses:
Since my characters are giving me trouble, my SAT prep is a bit time-consuming, and I have completely lost track of time many times in Moby Dick or Oliver Twist, the next chapter of my story has not made very good progress. Even worse, I have neglected my blog and left you all with nothing to read.
Plans:
I am currently working on two posts: one of them is the second chapter to the story I posted in my last post, and the other is a response to a post by a fellow blogger.
Apologies:
Sorry for the tremendous gap between the last post and this one, I could have at least given you some sort of a writing update!
More:
Hmm...it would be rude to leave you with nothing but excuses, apologies, and plans, wouldn't it? Well, I cannot give you any good writing from my recent work, but I can give you a story I wrote last summer for a writing class I took. We were told to choose a well known fairy tale or nursery rhyme, and rewrite it from an unusual perspective. Enjoy!
Soli Deo Gloria,
~Kristin
Trial of the Hag
“Miss Hagella
will now come to the stand. Tell the jury what happened deep in the
Forest on the day in question.” The witch calmly responded with her
story:
“You should first
understand that life has not treated me well. And so I found myself
living in the woods with nothing but my stove, broom, and baking
supplies. I did what any skilled baker would do: I set to work baking
large sheets of gingerbread and made myself a house. Not the most
weather-proof shelter as one might expect, but it kept out most of
the rain. Piece by piece I added to it: decorated it with candy,
water-proofed it with icing, added gutters and windows; pretty soon I
had a nice little cottage that only needed a few daily repairs. Fate
seemed to smile on me for the first time in years, until that
dreadful morning.
“Yes, one morning
when I woke the sun already shone through my sparkly sugar-windows. A
strange sound, such as I had not heard in years drifted to me with
the wind. Voices? 'I must be crazy!' I thought to myself. 'Surely
nobody would wander this far
into the woods!' I opened the door a crack and peeked out, sure
enough two children danced about, laughing to each other. I smiled,
remembering the old days when I regularly saw other people, happy
people; but then I saw what pleased them! My house, my beautiful
house! Those greedy children were yanking down my shutters, pulling
off my decorations! My little side door with the licorice and
caramel-apple knocker, gone! Before my very eyes they yanked out my
windows and devoured them! Certainly I could not let this vandalism
continue. I quickly formed my plan: I would cage them, only for a
short while, so I could repair my house. Then I would bake something
for them to eat, as apparently they possessed good appetites in order
to produce such damage.
“I
leaned out and called to them. They stared at me for a minute, I dare
say they had reason! Could anybody live in the woods without proper
soap or new clothes and maintain a child-friendly appearance? Truly,
I had become a rough looking person, but my words and voice
eventually charmed them inside. I penned the children into a corner
with my heaviest candy-canes, hoping that would contain them long
enough for my repairs and baking. It did not. The oven heated, and I
bent over to put in my new shutters, when I felt two small pairs of
hands shove me. I lost my balance and fell head first into the oven!
They slammed it shut behind me, bent on baking me! With my legs I
pushed against the oven door, but they leaned against it, gleefully
'taking care of the mean old witch!'
“Fortunately,
witches have quick minds and high heat tolerance, while children have
short attentions spans. It occurred to me to lie still, so that they
would believe I had died and would leave. My plan worked, and I
escaped, but only after suffering severe burns, and losing everything
I owned! There was no time for me to pack supplies, I could not even
grab my broom! In such an unprepared and hurried manner I fled those
who tried to take my life, and sought refuge further in among the
trees.
Eventually
I found a stream, and followed it until I came to a path. Despite my
independent nature, I knew I could not proceed without provisions, so
I journeyed for several days. At last I reached a town, starving and
thirsty I went to the first building I saw and knocked upon the door;
out stepped a police officer who arrested me on the spot for child
abuse and attempted murder! Apparently those brats told their parents
that I caged them and intended to bake them. Me! The outcast who
wanted only to live in peace! If those children are not punished for
their vandalism, their theft, and attempting to murder me, while I
rot in prison for crimes I did not commit, then justice does not
prevail! Your honor, I beg of you, do not sentence a poor, innocent
woman to a sentence she does not deserve. Please!”
Now
that both sides of the story are known, which party wronged the
other? Did Hansel and Gretel truly act in self-defense, or did they
attempt murder? Judge well, your honor.
