Saturday, 28 February 2026

Ode to the Mackenzies by January Bain

 

ODE TO THE MACKENZIES

by January Bain

A death wind blew on Kentucky hills, 

Where the Ghost in the dust began to spin. 

It tested the hearts and the iron wills, 


Of a brother cursed by another’s sin.

 


Cormac walked through the shadow and leaf, 


With an innocent soul and a steady hand. 


He traded his peace for a stranger’s grief, 


To lead a small flock through a broken land.


 

Burgundy stood where the garden once grew,

 

The weight of the world on her narrow frame.

 

She kept the old vows that the family knew, 


While the darkness whispered her sister’s name.



 

Auburn was lost in a desert of stone, 


With a secret of shame and a bitter scar. 


She faces the howling wind all alone, 


Guided by guilt and a dying star.

 



Poppy sees spirits that dance in the air, 


A child of the needle, of sugar and light.

 

With Sera beside her to answer her prayer,

 

She smiles at the dawn in the middle of night.



 

Nana is anchored in days long since past, 


Her memory fading like mist on the creek

She doesn't see shadows the wicked men cast, 


Or hear the dark warnings the ravens speak.



 

Frost is the Kingmaker, hardened and cold, 


Who traded his soul for a life-saving breath.

 

With the Rebel Sons’ colors, defiant and bold,

 

He stands at the gates between mercy and death.

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