WEP challenge for April, 2022 inspired by Bob Dylan’s, A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall. Write, Edit, Publish is a bloghop started by Denise Covey. The ladies, Denise, Nila, Laura, Jemi, Renee and Olga serve as moderators. If you’d like to participate, we welcome you. To visit the blogs of others who also wrote stories, poems or posted pictures or did something else to highlight the prompt, go here.
Tag: Life and love overcome.
A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall
Rain and hail pelted Annie’s car as she sat in the parking lot staring at the prison. He is in there. The stuff of nightmares seared her mind, replaying that fatal night’s terror.
Her faith had prevented her from aborting the child. His child! Despite the ugly truth, she loved her blue eyed baby boy. No longer a baby, but always a baby to her. Naming him had been so hard. Even after his birth, she’d struggled. Alone in the hospital, holding her precious bundle conceived in violence. Still, that night had motivated her to become a lawyer. As such she helped other women in the same situation. Though most of her clients had been raped by their boyfriends, not a serial rapist who turned murderer only one victim away from her ordeal.
He won’t face death, but he should. Why should he continue to be allowed to breathe, when he’d raped twenty-two women and the last ten he’d murdered? Would his son become a monster like him? Her Jessie, named for a favorite uncle. No, Jessie would be a good man, she made sure of that. She’d given him a dog and a cat, along with unconditional love. He was kind, thoughtful and passed every subject in school with high scores, usually above 90 points.
Jessie didn’t know the truth about his father and if she could help it, he never would. She put her Dylan CD in the cars player and turned the volume up. She wanted to drown out the sound of hard rain, the windshield wipers and her thoughts. Annie had always appreciated Bob Dylan’s poetic music and this song, A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall, was especially appropriate.
If she were a monster, she’d enter the prison with a loaded gun, shoot anyone who stood in her way and go to his cell, were she’d pup bullets into his face. But she wasn’t a monster. She was woman, survivor, mother, friend, confident and professional trial attorney. The men she tried were scum. Her Jessie was brilliant, and compassionate. He would bring joy to many. Out of fear and sorrow I birthed joy!
Annie put the car in gear, backed up and then pulled out of the parking lot headed home. Once there, she’d hug the gift that was Jessie.
Word Count: 388
As I listened to A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall, I adapted a few of the lyrics to write this story. A story of violence and hope. If you enjoyed my story or not, please leave a comment. Any type of comment is fine. I'm a big girl.
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Loren’s parents want her to choose from the young men in her village and marry. But, that’s not what Loren wants. While at the village well, a stranger arrives. Tall and handsome, he intrigues her. When the emperor’s soldiers are spotted. The threat is upon them, Loren could become a blood sacrifice. Before she can run, the stranger grabs her and gallops for the covering of the forest. What will happen next?
Website link: https://authornrwilliams.com/
22 comments:
What a strong woman! Good for Annie to love her son and ensure he grew into a good man. Such a difficult situation, but she made great choices. Well done!
Thank you Jemi
Nancy
Love this story. Uplifting and hopeful, it feels like a life-affirming breather among so many gloomy entries of this challenge.
Thank you, Olga.
Nancy
What a story about strength and courage to overcome an terrible event to make something good out of it through her son and a successful career. Well written! :)
Well done Nancy - what a clever story woven around the horror she'd experienced ... I sure hope she and her son survive and bring joy and happiness to others. All the best - Hilary
Ooh, that's a powerful theme! Love how strong she is, both for her career and for her son.
Thanks Carrie Ann, Hilary and Deniz. Glad you liked it.
Nancy
I love the strength of this survivor. Blazing hopeful, helpful trails rather than allowing herself to be defined and limited.
It takes rare courage to bear and bring up the son of a rapist. Courage and love. Jessie will be her reward. Compelling characterisation and great story. Well crafted.
Thanks Elephant and Nila.
Nancy
This is one strong woman. Coping with that kind of violation is bound to be difficult. I love that she's done all she can to make the best life for herself and her son that she can.
A strong woman. A survivor. Great story of hope and perserverance. Well done!
I understand the motivations of the survivor. What she must be going through. I've read stories where women wonder if their child, the child of rape, will be a monster like their father. In this case, I hope now. Very emotional Nancy.
Thank you, Laura, Yolanda and Denise. I'm glad you enjoyed the story.
Nancy
Lots of pain there. And the question of nature vs nurture. Fits with the song, I think.
So much fortitude and courage in this story. Definitely a lot of strength to take home.
-Sonia
I never reported any of my rapists. I was sure I wouldn't be believed. My own family's attitudes confirmed that. When I told them what happened, they blamed me.
It does take great strength to raise a child conceived during a violent assault. But I do not fault anyone who can't. I don't know if I could.
What a situation to be in. I was about to write 'dilemma' but there was no dilemma for her. She'd decided to make the best of the situation and separate the child from who his father was or how he was conceived. Wonderfully written.
I love the optimism and determination reflected in this piece.
So, glad Jessie has turned in to a good man, nature versus nurture and nurture won.
Thank you, J. Lenni, A Hundred Quills, Kalpana, Shannon and Sally. I appreciate what you've said.
Oh my Ornery Owl, I am sorry to hear that. Women of any abuse should be believed.
Nancy
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