[image_slider class="animate" speed="2000"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/richmond/Richmond_2009_5.jpg"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/richmond/Richmond_2009_3.jpg"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/richmond/Richmond_2009_2.jpg"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/richmond/Richmond_2009_4.jpg"] [/image_slider] ...
What the fuck happened? This isn’t right. I shouldn’t be here. Panic surged through me, bringing me to my knees as I trembled with fear. My mind raced, trying to piece together the fragments of memory. What happened? Suddenly, my dream came flooding back, a haunting reminder that made me shudder. I recalled lying on the hotel room floor, on top of the plastic I had covered most of the room with—in preparation for the macabre scene to come. I wanted to make it as easy as possible for those charged with cleaning up my ugly mess, my life. What The Fuck Happened? The faint recollection of me screaming at God made me feel sick again. Then the peace of knowing what I had to do, of what I needed to leave behind, before I built on the foundation of the damage I had already caused. I pulled the trigger. Fuck, I pulled the fucking trigger. I checked the .45, one round still seated in the chamber, full of a finite promise. I pulled the slide back, and the ejected round landed in my hand. I inspected it, turning it back and forth with my fingers, checking for the telltale dimple left by the firing pin. A Creasy bullet—misfire and misfortune. What the fuck happened? ...
Lustitia picked up the Rod of Asclepius and, with a wave of her hand, brought the two broken pieces into one. With her breath, she gave life to the serpent, allowing it to wrap itself around the rod once again. Lustitia, the embodiment of justice and balance, had seen countless souls stand before her. Each plea, each denial, weighed heavily on her eternal duty. Though blindfolded, she perceived the true nature of every soul, their hidden truths, and unspoken fears. The scales she held were not just tools of judgment but extensions of her very essence, reflecting the eternal struggle between guilt and redemption. This soul, kneeling before her-my soul, in some ways mirrored her own doubts—could true justice ever be devoid of compassion? She hesitated, recalling her own trials when she first took up the mantle of judgment. She stretched out her arm, holding the scales of judgment, now heavily tipped toward guilt, and said, "I offer you a reprieve from your misery, yet you willingly and foolishly run, dragging your soul to hell. I offer you salvation, and you deny it as if the idea of being saved insults you. Above all, I present you with a second chance, and you reject it as though you are unworthy. You stand before me, witnessing with your own eyes your fate balanced within the scales of judgment I hold in my hand, and you dare me to judge you, knowing you're already guilty. Do you think you're not worthy of salvation?" Still kneeling before her with my arms and hands stretched wide, I lowered my head, shielding myself from the anger in her voice. Yet I could also feel her pleading for me to reconsider. With my eyes closed, I spoke softly to avoid further angering her, "Not all souls can be saved, let alone mine. If I accept your offer and continue my life free of this sickness, living as I should, with love for myself and those close to me, I would still be haunted by the memories of the pain I have caused others, those I love. My crimes aren't erased; they are not suddenly undone. They will forever linger in the minds of my victims and mine. I see no purpose in that. Salvation doesn't wash away my sins; they still exist. If this 'second chance' you offer would allow me to begin again, before committing my crimes, with the knowledge I have now, I would willingly accept. But that's not possible. The gift of life and the possibility of an afterlife speaks to the impossibility of that. So yes, I deny your offer because it would only serve to torment me further." She called for me to raise my head and then said, "What of forgiveness? Certainly, you could accept my offer if your victims were to forgive you. Perhaps then you would allow yourself to be free of your sickness." I had already considered this—forgiveness. But I am not worthy of their forgiveness. I acted against them in...
In a wakeful dream, I stood before Lustitia. She was blindfolded, with the scales of judgment held gently balanced in one hand. Lustitia, once a mortal who had ascended to her divine role, carried the weight of every judgment she had ever rendered. Her blindfold was not merely a symbol but a reminder of her own sacrifice—her choice to forsake personal bias for the sake of true justice. The scales in her hand were not just an instrument but a part of her being, sensitive to the subtlest shifts in morality and truth. She had long pondered the nature of guilt and redemption, understanding that every soul she judged was a reflection of her own journey toward understanding the delicate balance between justice and mercy. Before her lay the rod of Asclepius, a single serpent wrapped along its length. She motioned for me to move within her shadow. Once there, she whispered, "You can stand before me in judgment and in humble supplication, or you may take up the rod and free yourself of the sickness that has chased you every day of your life, but you can only choose one." I thought for a moment, then I began to kneel, readying myself to be judged. Though she was blindfolded, I could feel her eyes heavy on me. She said, "Why not take up the rod of Asclepius and be free of your sickness? Why submit yourself to judgment?" I raised my head so that I could meet her blinded gaze. I said, "If I take up the rod, then yes, I will no longer be sick, but I will still know that I am guilty." The scales began to lose their balance slightly as she spoke. "Then why be judged if you already know your guilt?" I stretched out my arms to either side with my hands and fingers spread wide. "I have no desire to live free of this sickness while drowned in guilt. I'd rather face judgment so those I love can be free." She told me to stand and said, "Take up the rod, be free of your sickness, and I shall judge you at the end of your time." I plucked the rod from where it lay. I choked the serpent and broke the rod in two, throwing them both at her feet and screaming as if I were casting words deep into a void, "I will be judged now so that I can be free of this sickness!" The scales tipped heavily to one side, and I was finally...
[image_slider class="animate" speed="2000"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/Haven/leaning.jpg"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/Haven/leaning_1.jpg"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/Haven/Looking_Up.jpg"] [/image_slider] ...
Never @gain! Before this day or the next… something must give besides me and besides the pain, which is always too willing to give… so much and so often.MH~ ...
[image_slider class="animate" speed="2000"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/Haven/Front_1280.jpg"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/Haven/Front_Pocket_1280.jpg"] [image_slide img="http://marqueshaven.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/Haven/Back_1280.jpg"] [/image_slider] To be clear… these were taken back when Rock'n Republics were, well Rock'n. MH~ ...
