The Witch Trials

There is this urban legend about the hill by my house.

They say that back in the day they hanged witches up there.

I walk these city streets now and try to count the differences,

But there are not that many: the same stares, the same square.

Back then people talked until these two women perished.

Well, Anna and her sister simply got the short end of the stick.

I lean over the edge of the bridge by the graveyard

And I look down at the passing trains until I feel sick.

They say someone grew jealous over Anna’s sharp wit.

The rumors spread like wildfire; she did not have a chance.

She probably told judges the truth and they erased it,

And the gallows really did not care if you took a stance.

There is this old tale about the neighborhood I live in.

They say that one day someone furious will burn it all down.

Not like all those years ago when the great kings did it –

This time an angry woman will act like she has a crown.

So, I walk these city streets now, I avoid buying matches,

And I only burn my candles at night when they all rest.

Back then they put gallows on a hill and called it fairness,

But these days they skin us bare and call our souls blessed.

-Jackie