A Monstrous Manifesto
I wasn't at StrowlerCon this weekend: it sounds fabulous, but I don't regret having to miss it. You see, I was in Las Vegas, standing as the Matron of Honor in my best friend's wedding. She had the most gorgeous ceremony I've yet had the privilege of attending, and I wouldn't have missed it for the world.
No, seriously. If I'd needed to save the world this weekend, it would've had to have been saved by 7:30 AM on Sunday morning, when we were cracking open that first bottle of wine and settling into the rituals of bridal party prep at the venue.
This isn't yet the post about Jamelle's wedding, however: rather, I wanted to post this powerful piece by Catherynne M. Valente, read at the Monster's Ball at Strowlercon:
If you are a monster, stand up.
If you are a monster, a trickster, a fiend,
If you’ve built a steam-powered wishing machine
If you have a secret, a dark past, a scheme,
If you kidnap maidens or dabble in dreams
Come stand by me.
If you have been broken, stand up.
If you have been broken, abandoned, alone
If you have been starving, a creature of bone
If you live in a tower, a dungeon, a throne
If you weep for wanting, to be held, to be known,
Come stand by me.
If you are a savage, stand up.
If you are a witch, a dark queen, a black knight,
If you are a mummer, a pixie, a sprite,
If you are a pirate, a tomcat, a wright,
If you swear by the moon and you fight the hard fight,
Come stand by me.
If you are a devil, stand up.
If you are a villain, a madman, a beast,
If you are a strowler, a prowler, a priest,
If you are a dragon come sit at our feast,
For we all have stripes, and we all have horns,
We all have scales, tails, manes, claws and thorns
And here in the dark is where new worlds are born.
Come stand by me.
No, seriously. If I'd needed to save the world this weekend, it would've had to have been saved by 7:30 AM on Sunday morning, when we were cracking open that first bottle of wine and settling into the rituals of bridal party prep at the venue.
This isn't yet the post about Jamelle's wedding, however: rather, I wanted to post this powerful piece by Catherynne M. Valente, read at the Monster's Ball at Strowlercon:
If you are a monster, stand up.
If you are a monster, a trickster, a fiend,
If you’ve built a steam-powered wishing machine
If you have a secret, a dark past, a scheme,
If you kidnap maidens or dabble in dreams
Come stand by me.
If you have been broken, stand up.
If you have been broken, abandoned, alone
If you have been starving, a creature of bone
If you live in a tower, a dungeon, a throne
If you weep for wanting, to be held, to be known,
Come stand by me.
If you are a savage, stand up.
If you are a witch, a dark queen, a black knight,
If you are a mummer, a pixie, a sprite,
If you are a pirate, a tomcat, a wright,
If you swear by the moon and you fight the hard fight,
Come stand by me.
If you are a devil, stand up.
If you are a villain, a madman, a beast,
If you are a strowler, a prowler, a priest,
If you are a dragon come sit at our feast,
For we all have stripes, and we all have horns,
We all have scales, tails, manes, claws and thorns
And here in the dark is where new worlds are born.
Come stand by me.