Too Much Blood

(to the tune of “Me and a Gun” by Tori Amos)

we have shed too much blood and it may be too late
but we can’t just not try to stop all of this hate

i don’t care any more who’s what side of what fight
who is jew who is arab who is black who is white

we have shed too much blood and it may be too late
but we can’t just not try to stop all of this hate

i don’t care any more who is provo who is prot
who is serb who is croat who is with me who is not

we have shed too much blood and it may be too late
but we can’t just not try to stop all of this hate

we can’t sleep any more with our trust in a gun
it is time to wake up and to see what we’ve done

we have shed too much blood and it may be too late
but we can’t just not try to stop all of this hate

it has been too damn easy just to kill what we fear
or to let others suffer just because they’re not here

we have shed too much blood and it may be too late
but we can’t just not try to stop all of this hate

it has been first resort it seems all of my life
send a bomb or a bullet grab a rock or a knife

we have shed too much blood and it may be too late
but we can’t just not try to stop all of this hate

on this day I have vowed to myself that I will
find another way to live and let live not to kill

we have shed too much blood and it may be too late
but we can’t just not try to stop all of this hate

© 1994, C. M. Joserlin a.k.a. "Raven”

The Feast of Saint George

tinyurl.com/feast-george

My local SCA barony held a Feast of Saint George, with dragon contest entries of every sort (from cookies to a giant sculpture built out of carpet rollers sprayed green). During dinner, my wife and I ended up sitting at one end of head table, looking at the giant dragon sitting at the other end… and I tried to figure out how THAT story fit the legend… then the words started running through my head like fire, and I sputtered to her, “Pen! Paper!”… scribbled through the third course, and begged leave of the herald to recite the result during the fourth course, standing next to the dragon, goblet in hand. It was well received.

There once was a bold British Knight
Who went hunting a Dragon to fight;
     But when it smelled Dragon
     His horse began laggin’…
And then ran away out of fright.

The Knight was left standing alone,
To face the fierce Wurm on his own;
     This warrior so brave
     Followed smoke to a cave
Where the Dragon lay deep in the stone.

“Bold Knight,” said the well-hidden Beast,
“Your visit shows courage, at least,
     But wisdom is lacking
     In Knights who go hacking
At mountains, instead of at feast.

“Go home, and carve pork-pies instead,
And chickens, and cheeses, and bread; *
     Come back with a share —
     Folks’ll be free from care,
For no Dragon hunts when well fed!”

The Knight walked all day down the road,
Then rode back with a wagon-full load
     Of savory feast
     To feed to the Beast;
And as for the Dragon — it GROWED!

It ate ’till its stomach was swelling
To fill all its cavernous dwelling;
     And, true to its word,
     The Dragon preferred
To dine home instead of go killing.

So now we may lift up our flagon
In salute to the Knight (and his wagon),
     And wash down our feed
     With good whiskey and mead,
And — give a BIG share to the Dragon!

(* These were among the foods served at that dinner.)

© 1991 by C. M. Joserlin, “Raven”

[The Suno AI has composed and performed a tune for this song.]

Dealing with Dragons

tinyurl.com/dealing-dragons

(for Lawrence Watt-Evans)

A dragon is a snooty beast: it will not speak politely,
But only snorts when spoken to — retorts that burn so brightly.

A dragon’s famed for stubbornness: it guards its gold hoard tightly,
And only leaves that to fend off its foes, both base and knightly.

A dragon’s quick on land or air; it’s nimble, swift, and sprightly.
A stone wall daunts it not at all, and water only slightly.

A dragon knows hot-headed rage; its temper is unsightly;
And woe to those this critic flames for not behaving rightly.

So when you are in dragon’s den, be careful to tread lightly;
And if you step on dragon’s tail — apologize contritely!

© 1996 by C. M. Joserlin, “Raven”

(The first six words are a direct quote of a humorous remark Lawrence Watt-Evans made to a fan about her shoulder dragon in the huckster room of a Milwaukee science-fiction convention in 1996. Overnight I wrote this piece, and handed him a copy the next morning.)

[The Suno AI has composed and performed a tune for this song.]

A Voyage to Middle-Earth

tinyurl.com/voyage-to-middleearth

Find me a ship that can sail on the sea
     Whose waves are the washed-away years,
Over the Ocean of Dreams; let it be
     Sweet Middle-Earth’s shore that she nears.

Voyage to Ennorath, tree-tangled land, *
     To find my old friends faring well,
Take dwarf, elf, hobbit, and wizard by hand,
     And hear what new tales they will tell;

Wander in Lorien, try to console
     Galadriel’s elven lament;
Party with Bombadil, merry old soul;
     At leisure, converse with an ent;

Fly with the eagles, look down on the graves
     Where dragon or balrog once fell;
Stand on the shore and look over the waves
     Toward where the Valar now dwell;

Ride to the mead-halls, astride the swift steeds
     Of Rohan, that race like the wind;
Hark to the harpers and hear of the deeds
     Of those who sought virtue, or sinned;

Learn of the lore of the long-ago times
     Before Sauron dared to attack;
Hear how his creatures accomplished his crimes,
     And how the Free Folk fought him back;

Join in the praise of the courage they showed
     By facing that fell, fearsome foe;
Joy in the peace and the freedom bestowed
     On good folk to flourish and grow.

Let me sing with them the songs of the Quest,
     The heroes, the brave and the fair;
Let me hear legends of Middle-Earth’s best...
     But, most of all, let me be there!

   * In the Hymn to Elbereth, the line “o galadhremmin ennorath”
     translates as “from tree-tangled middle-lands (Middle-Earth)”.

               © 1986 C. M. Joserlin, "Raven"
(Blogged today in honour of J.R.R. Tolkien's 132nd birthday.)

[The Suno AI has composed and performed a tune for this song.]