“I heard …”

“_her husband cheated on her with a prostitute_”

“And had three bastard children_”

“In desperate blind_”

“ Anger she killed them_”

 

“They bound her to a chain_”

“No a stake_”

“Burned her alive!”

“She was framed_”

“Claimed she was a witch_”

“Say her name_”

“Three times in the mirror_”

“And she appears…”

 

Nonsense

All of it 

To label and tarnish my name

With myths, rumours and lies

My name…you see 

They call me

B L O O D Y M A R Y

They lack respect 

For me 

Neglect me

Calling upon my restless peace

In every mirror

They see 

 

Dark and eerie

They couldn’t possibly understand the full effect

Of what they’re doing

Who they’re summoning…

 

I woke up here 

Have lain here for years 

Wasting away in this..

Place.. I know not

Eerie...dark 

All my surroundings

Engulfed within this encompassing 

Endless void

Of nothing

Nothing for miles

They call it 

Purgatory 

Alone

With the exception of the relentless 

Moaning of souls in agony

 

I know what you’re thinking…

Is it all true?

What could I possibly do 

To deserve this?

For my name, my true name

Mary Maldona 

Thirteen years of age

 

It all happened so quickly

One moment I had gone to use the privy

When I was first attacked

An invisible force it was

As I 

Strewn out upon the ground

Screamed aloud for help 

In agony

As I bled out upon the floor

To no avail 

No one came for me...

 

I’d woken up then 

Held down by vicious men 

As I had a certain uncleanliness

A spiritual sickness

Because I had been “wailing at nothing”

 

Blood covering my 

Hands and feet

trickling down my thighs, my legs

They’d thought maybe I was pregnant 

With the child of a demon

But..no bump

No cut 

No gash

Where was the blood coming from?

 

“A witch”  they’d said

Collected the rest of my village 

In an angry attempt 

To rid themselves of me

 

Cuffed me to wood 

And to their desire

Doused me in gasoline

And lit the fire

Set me ablaze 

As I burned and cried for

What felt like hours__

 

 

-----

 

“Hey Mary! Make sure you write in that little journal of yours how to wear a tampon

B L O O D Y M A R Y!”

 

………

 

I roll my eyes and decide

I not dignify the asshole with a reply

As middle school purgatory

Is only made worse

For a hormonal teen

Simply beginning puberty..

So is

  B L O O D Y M A R Y 

A myth? A lie?

Who truly am I?

...well legend has it..

Little do they know...