The Storm

     I was to be his third betrothal in less than a year. The official word was that each princess became ill, though everyone whispered. There were vile rumors cycling through the kingdoms. Yet no other King feared for his daughter more than his lust for power. Being betrothed to Prince Gabriel was an honor above all else, even one's life. High King Leon was the most powerful King in all the land, from sea to sea. He allowed lesser kings out of his lack of desire to personally rule every part of his vast kingdom. Giving crooks the powerful title of "king" kept them from banding together against him. High King most enjoyed a healthy village competition. He would offer gold and his most prized concubines; prized for their cleanliness, son bearing, and skills of a shameful matter. The competition was typically who could grow and gather the most crops in a season, or birth the most cattle.
    Cattle. I was being sold as cattle. According to my father, a woman is only good for gain. Whether fain by betrothal into power, or bearing children. I wasn't even of use to my mother. She resented me. After difficulty bearing children for a year, she finally began expecting. Unfortunately, her body didn't carry them long and they were all girls. I was the first to survive the early birth. My nursemaid said that's why my hazel eyes are so big, my early birth. My mother on more than one occasion informed me that because of me her blood would never hold power. The king only lays with his concubines now, hoping for a successor. That is until I was asked to marry the High Prince.
     I look in my wardrobe wondering if I should try to look beautiful, or if beauty is why the prince's former brides are now with God. My theory is the prince has a lust for ultimate power. The power of God to decide who lives, and who dies. I would rather die as royally as possible I decide. My finest silks are packed, and my favorite red dress is the one I shall meet him in. It's a two day carriage ride. My only companion is my dog. She's a lovely animal, and has protected me these past five years.
     See my father, the king of the plains, has a nasty temper. Many of his concubines have been beaten beyond recognition. For my twelfth birthday, I was permitted to go to the Grand Market and pick a few gifts. I considered meaningless puppets for entertainment, or a talented slave girl to braid my hair in exotic fashions or make me impressive with her sewing skills. I found however, as I looked into the eyes of the child I saw a reflection. I saw the same pained eyes that I saw in my mirror everyday. I knew I would never be free, and neither would she. It was then I heard an odd whimper. We had all manner of beasts in the kingdoms. We had dragons that stole sheep in the night, dogs to hunt with, birds that filled our cloudy day with color, but I had never seen such a curious animal.It was a hunting dog, but just a pup. He stood out from his energetic siblings, in fact my memory swears he rolled his eyes but I'll write that off as girlish fancy. He was quiet, calm and met my gaze with intensity. His eyes were a deep blue, and very noticeable compared to his black fluff. Funny how such an adorable creature could look so proud. I wanted him. The seller protested my want for the hunting beast. He threw around the words worthless and weak. He even kicked the creature to prove his words, claiming that the animal should whimper or recoil. Instead the knee high dog walked right back to his spot and sat, never losing my eyes. Instinctively, my face turned into an expression of disgust but I still expressed my desire for the dog. I only paid half out of pity from the seller claiming the dog will serve no one. The seller assumed my facial expression was that for a perceived faulty beast only good for his dazzling eyes, but I was revolted by the type of man who hurts those he deems below him.
     I named him Storm for his eyes reminded me of that eerie calm that descends before the storm. When father heard of my gift choice of a worthless hunting dog, he seemed indifferent, but his indifference can disguise his inner fury. I sat on my bed stroking the tangled fur on my Storm, whispering to my pet that I would see to it that no one ever kicked him again and live to see the light of day. Father came walking in to see my gift.
"Isn't it lovely, father?" I said in an attempt to invoke sympathy and amusement, seemingly asking his permission. He liked feeling above everyone, stroking his ego seemed to keep me from the more severe lashings.
"Yes, lovely." His eyes met mine and fear struck my core. His green eyes were betraying a different kind of evil, a hunger almost. He took slow advancing steps towards me.
"Is there anything I can do for you? A shirt that needs my mending, perhaps fresh bed linens?" I was stammering for something to distract him from the unnerving look in his eyes.
"Not tonight my dear. Tonight my needs are beyond simple mending or washing." He sat at the foot of my bed.
"You are a woman now my sweet, and as such you are now ready to help me with...adult matters."
    He inched closer within arms reach. My grip on Storm tightened as my entire body tensed. He put his hands on my shoulders and forced his lips onto mine. I bit down as hard as I could until I tasted his blood. He recoiled in pain. I decided right then that I would rather die than allow him to take me as a harlet would. He was stunned for a moment because I had never stood up to him before. His surprise didn't last very long, and he moved towards me again. As he reached this time Storm  jumped between us. Before I had time to blink, my father was cradling one of his hands as blood poured from the place where his left thumb should've been. He had a remarkable look of fear in his eyes as he made a hasty retreat. Storm was standing on my bed now, and despite his fluffy stuffed toy appearance, he was a frightful sight. After he seemed satisfied that my father wasn't coming back, he turned to me with a grin. Well, about as grin as a dog could get. He let his floppy ears lower and began to wiggle his nub of a tail left and right. He tackled me with a warm snuggle, and my heart melted. The joy I felt after that moment still remains unrivaled. I finally had love, a protector, and my father never bothered me beyond idle threats. He has since never left my side, still growling when my father is in the room.
     Storm's reactions base my opinions of everyone. If he growls upon a fellow nobel kissing my hand, or a guest entering the sitting room, I instantly don't trust them. I'm grateful to have him in my carriage now. His presence giving me comfort. His reaction to the Prince will guide my actions. I'm still concerned about who the prince may be, but nothing can weather my Storm.

-Heather

Let me know if you want me to continue the story, or if you like it just the way it is.
 

Life at it's finest!

     I shouldn't write so seldomly, but lately little miss hasn't been giving me very good naps. I have noticed if she doesn't give me at least two hours to mentally relax, and doodle on the computer, eat without hearing "Bite?", or stretch with a few yoga poses I'm kinda irritable. Then I realized the only thing I did differently these past few days is slept in with her instead of waking up early and doing most of these things. I'm so glad she isn't one of those five to six in the morning babies.

     I passed my practical boards! Yay! After failing the first time by three points for looking around nervously, or making eye contact with the proctors, I determined to test again as soon as we had the money to sign me up. I didn't do anything differently as far as the actual work. The only thing I did do differently was look at the floor after I finished things. It was no reflection of my skills whatsoever, but isn't that was government licensing is all about? I mean seriously, if a DMV worker drove around with me for a few days I might not have my license. Just kidding, I'm not a bad driver...I just notice that if there are people other than Bri, whom I can ignore for her own safety, distracting me with conversation or complaining of my music choices there are more close calls than I like. 

     Painting. Not in the sense that I'm making a mess, that would be cool. Just digital painting with my drawing pad, computer, and Manga Studio 5 (cheap drawing program). I started with some "commissions" which were free, to warm me up. It was great because some of them I was really inspired about, others I just did because I said I'd do them. Speaking of which, friends if you ever want a painting of sorts I would gladly oblige. Free if I really enjoy myself. Five bucks if you want to print it up at walgreens canvas style. Because that would involve a big picture with lots of detail so blowing it up wouldn't lose the beauty. You can see my work click here.

   While opening my mind to the creativity of drawing, I had a dream. It was a beautiful dream, full of feelings and intrigue. Naturally I woke up, wrote out an outline for the story, and began typing it up. I'm still in the process of, what would this character say or do or think. This might just end up like the story I wrote in high school. It was 14 notebook pages front and back. It was all consuming. I wrote in almost every class. Everyone who read it, liked it and wanted more. Unfortunately, I didn't hash out a general storyline with vague details. I had no idea where the story was going. No idea. I still have the majority of the idea in my mind, so maybe one day. If you are interested in reading the current story, I would be willing to email you what I have so far. I take critique well. It's just a fun side project mostly, but if all my friends loved it and I had a shot at getting it published....I'd gladly roll in that dough. If you like romance/weird scifi-esque stuff, you might like it. If not...probably not, but I wouldn't say it's that weird. 

   Last but not least, the topic I will cover briefly before the bub awakens is essential oils. Don't worry I'm not trying to sell you anything. However, I can't positively comment enough about them. Peppermint diffused and rubbed on the chest of the baby with the clogged nose so she'll stop screaming about how she can't breath through her nose. Clary Sage, lavender, and peppermint blend (equal parts) on my abdomen and lower back for my period. Yes ladies, you read that right. It was a literally painless period. No joke. No painful cramps. Drop of rosemary on the baby who was beginning to get a yeast infection from her antibiotics a few months ago when she had strep. The best story yet, Frankincense for Travis' birthmark. Travis has a huge mole looking birthmark on his knee. To remove it would involve surgery and not bending that leg for weeks. I wanted to see what would happen if I put oil on it. A few days later, he scratched it and half of it peeled off. Beneath where it peeled off is beautiful skin. Frankincense is my current favorite, but I don't diffuse it simply because I think it smells like a hippy in the woods. I'm sure that my in-laws would not enjoy that smell consuming their basement. I'm not really brand loyal. I am a doterra wholesale buyer/could sell person, but I'm just being introduced to oils. I'm not really willing to fork over money for a smell I have to convince myself to like. Some of them, like patchouli which smells like dirt, I would consider buying and not realize they stink. Tea tree smells, but I've forced myself to get used to it. It's helped with my dry itchy scalp. So far I really like Aura Cacia, but it's higher priced than the Now brand. I like Now, but not as much. Don't ask me why I don't like it as much because I don't know. I like the basic oils in Now like lavender, lemon, clove, and my oregano, but I'm not a big fan of the now peppermint. I gotta say oregano is hard to screw up, that mess is strong! I love the smell of Oregano oil but Travis hates it. 

That's all for now. Hopefully I'll be blogging a little more. In our next edition we will cover tantrums and how to ignore them successfully.

-Heather