Sunday, October 30, 2011

Welcome Home!

Dear Friends,

            It’s been a decade awash in blood and tears.

            The men and women who have so selflessly sacrificed more than they should have ever been asked deserve our unending, heartfelt gratitude.
            It is because of those courageous, valiant souls that I have the freedom to write this without fear of persecution for voicing my thoughts in a public forum.
            Since time immemorial the strong have stood for the weak and bled for them.  They have been our champions and guardians.  They battled back those who would stand for evil over good, wrong over right, greed over altruism.
            In our history we haven’t always been so gracious to our warriors returning home.  The heroes returning from the Second World War were met with parades and revelry and praise for a job well done.  But those who returned from the jungles of Southeast Asia were greeted with scorn and ridicule and protests.  How could we have been so cruel to those who gave so much?  They fought and bled and died as soldiers had done for centuries and yet we treated them not as the heroic warriors they were but were shunned and persecuted for doing what they were sent to do.  They fought in our stead so that we could sleep in peace.
            Though it is years past time to say thank you to the veterans of Vietnam, I still want to tell them they were and are appreciated by many more than they really know.
            The men and women returning home from Iraq will be met with gratitude and open arms by most of the American people.  I will be one of them.
            There will be those dissenting few who will look down their noses and sniff in disdain at them for what they might perceive as unnecessary cruelty and violence toward a country that we had no business sticking our political noses in.  I say to them, “THEY DREW FIRST BLOOD!”  9/11 wasn’t the first attack against America; it was just the first attack on our turf.  We are now more vigilant and it will be the last time we are taken by surprise.
            We could no longer turn the other cheek when terrorist groups bent on destruction of democracy in favor of their religious tenets that dictated nothing but subjugation of women and death to any who do not believe as they do.
            Our men and women in uniform have upheld the democracy and freedom this country was founded on and still stands for.  They’ve done their patriotic duty not because they were paid a wage for their loyalty but because they believe in what they are fighting for.
            They are strong, they are proud, they are Americans with honor.
            Please join me in saying to all of those returning home from Iraq.

                                    WELCOME HOME      

            The war isn’t over and many more are destined to die until terrorism is defeated.  For now, we can rejoice in the fact that there are those with the strength of heart and soul to stand and say, “Not on my watch will your evil enter here!”

May God bless all of our military and keep them safe.

Until next time,
Kate

Saturday, October 22, 2011

A Timeless Battle

Hey y'all,
It's coming up on Halloween and I thought I would share a poem that Anna and I worked on a few months ago.  It seems fitting for this time of year and hopefully it will bring the chill bumps cheerfully raising on your skin.  Just remember that all myths have a grain of truth at their inception.  It really makes me wonder about the legends of vampires, werewolves and other creatures of the night.
I have recently been re-reading my collection of Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark-Hunter series and believe me it has given me a lot of pause for thought.  The woman is a master when it comes to mixing Greek Gods and vampires to make it all sound so  . . .  reasonably plausible?  Who knew?  If you haven't read anything by her this would be a great time to check it out.  I really enjoy her work and if you get a thrill out of Gothic vampires in modern day situations mixed with thousands of years of torturous memories that haunt her characters, and how they deal with the humans they inevitably come into contact with, you will love it

Now, here is the little ditty that I promised you:

The Timeless Battle

On wings of silence the wind swept, in evil defiance the mist crept as the new moon ruled the night
Lurking among shadows underneath heaven's gallows, the malevolent bastards started the fight
The gossamer veil grew too thin between spirits and ghosts and men as the battle for souls raged on
The Furies took their stand claiming souls of the recently damned as they greeted the blood red dawn
Magic dark and magic light ravaged each other through the night but only one will claim the power
It can be said the inception of this nightly obsession began at the dawn of the Golden Hour
Voices were raised in futility as darkness died in humility and they all screamed in pain
The dawn lay bleeding from the celestial feeding when the Gods were dark and insane
And the demons of fear demanded entry here as they beat bloodied fists upon the door
As the new moon set and the God's collected their debt, the evil ones retreated once more
To the depths of hell where Hades hailed, and the shades of Tartarus wailed in constant pain and woe
The evil ones will try to flee from there, the lost souls will do what they dare to end what they know
Forever in hunger and pain and thirst, to this existence they were cursed for the sins in their life
So know it now when offered this deal, some of the myths and legends are real, in your time there is goodness inside the strife.
Heed this warning for your immortal soul, evil has but only one goal: to return to life in the sun
As the world endlessly turns, their thirst for your blood burns if you fall the end has begun.


Oooo! give you the chills yet? Think about it on all hallows eve!

Have a great Halloween.
Kate