The Wishing Tree

Friday, 20 May 2011 09:49:15

New title and finished ballad - which could easily be explored further, of course.

Rotund, stonewashed and shiftless
He stood in the dark inn yard
Round, unwashed and in her shift
She thought her life was hard.

She remembered when, still but a child
She wandered fair and free
By the river, through the woods
And to the wishing tree.

And as she grew, the spell remained
And grew malignantly
So she would always regret the day
She stood by the wishing tree

The wishes she made were childish
Full of jealous spite
But she half-forgot those wishes
Until one fateful night

In her dream, the vision spoke
"Your wish will now come true"
And the fire that warmed the cottage
Grew and grew and grew.

She escaped the inferno
The only one to flee
But she was left an orphan
By the spell of the Wishing Tree.

So now the two of them stand
Stand in the old inn yard
But only she knows why
Their life is bitter and hard.

Be careful what you wish for
For your wish - it may come true
And if 'twas made with bad intent
For sure, that day you'll rue.