Wow, seven already! Today: Friendly!

A Prayer to Friendly

In the darkest depths of the coldest winter night
If you go walking into the trees
And you bear the stinging breeze
And you pass beyond the snowdrifts
And you hear laughing of a happy Glitch
Behold a fire burning in the dark
With dancers!

In the coldest depths of the darkest, deepest caves
If you go clambering under the Urth
And you press through clinging cobwebs
And you brush away the biting batterflies
And you hear the echos of a cheering song
Behold musicians playing a waltz
With dancers!

In the distant depths of the burning savannah
If you go cautiously through the grass
And you push through the leaves
And you stalk past the jujus
And you hear the chorus of a choir
Behold some merry Glitchen singing
With dancers!

In the burning depths of the distant volcano
If you go warily along the cliffs
And you leap past the lava
And you escape the poison gases
And you hear a racous party
Behold a Glitch’s house was spared
With dancers!

Near and far and far and near
Wherever one lends you a conforting ear
Far and near and near and far
Wherever one offers to help heal your scar
Everywhere friendship, and Friendly is always!

This prayer is best said in a group in a large cave. Also, the Glitchen should divide into three groups, and they should stagger their beginning of the prayer as in a round, each group one line behind the previous group. This has the effect of making the ‘Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille’ always be there in the background.

A Prayer to Zille

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

Let us chant together and remember
The long-ago time when Ur was flat…

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

The Glitchen were sad that the landscape so vast
Was boring and changeless and everyone was wet

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

They called out for mercy and what should appear
But Zille in Her glory and Giantish splendor

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

She Imagined small Rocks, then Rubble and Scree
The Glitchen, amazed, clambered out of the sea

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

Then sprouting up, Hills! Like ripples of dirt!
They sent out small wavelets in the ocean of Ur

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

Then suddenly, sharply, and without any warning,
A Cliffside split out of the roiling Urth!

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

It steepened and grew until suddenly, POW!
Its other side shot up and it was a Butte!

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

Others soon joined it, and things were progressing
And sure enough BANG! The first Mountain ascended!

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

And now Ur was wonderful, varied, and awesome
And Zille was quite satisfied at her creation

Zille Zille Zille Zille Zille

Today – Spriggan!

A Prayer to Spriggan

Long ago, when Ur was younger, things were very ugly
Brown dirt, gray rocks, and Glitchen feeling lonely.

The Piggies wandered to and fro with nothing much to nibble
And the Chickens, well, their squeezing yielded very little.

All the creatures small and big were weeping more than laughing
When suddenly, as if by magic, -something- started happening.

Here, some green,
A little shoot!
And POP! A flower blooms!

The very first,
But not for long!
POP! POP! POP! And now they ZOOM!

First to sprout was Yellow Crumb, its blossoms light and airy.
Not far behind came Purple Flower. Don’t eat it, that is scary!

And then with a flourish a red plant unfurled, and there was Gandlevery.
Beside it, Hairball Flowers bloomed, its flowers white and hairy.

Next came Rubeweed, unassuming, but filled with something lucky.
And with it sprouted Silvertongue which made the Glitchen merry.

Seeing all this revelry and growing green with envy,
A Rook flew by and scattered seeds, and Rookswort joind the party!

Then the growing slowed,
The cliffsides furred,
The meadows full of wonder.

Something else was lacking, though,
And slowly, rising mighty,
The first of the Trees emerged!

A Wood Tree pressed above the crowd, inventing trunks and branches.
Next to come were Paper Trees, whose leaves were dry and crispy.

Then came more POPping, but not from herbs – the Bubble Trees were blooming!
And close behind, the Gas Plants swelled and the forests started fuming.

Then Egg Plants grew, but down, not up – the depths were not forgotten.
And Fruit Trees gave the Glitchen new tastes, though some of them were rotten.

Then with a zip and a zing, the Spice Plants came out with great panache,
And last to grow, the stately Bean Trees, who thought the others rash.

And seeing that the lands were filling up with joy and wonder,
Spriggan at last revealed Himself as the cause of all this bounty.

His Words to Ur:
“Preserve these gifts,
And always you will prosper.”

And with that He faded into dreams,
To watch His bounty prosper.
And now all Glitchen give him thanks
with every sprout they water!

Today’s prayer!

A Prayer to Lem

Lem, who guides us on the many roads
And through the bogs thick with toads,

Bless our journeys, bless our feet
Bless the roads we walk on, and the friends we meet

Lem, who helps us learn what’s needed
And guides us when our advice is heeded,

Bless our thoughts, bless our minds,
Bless the lessons each of us finds

Lem, who helps us remember the world,
And guides us to places with wonders untold

Bless our hearts, bless our memories,
Bless those who come and those who leave.

Shorry it’sh late. (hic)

A Prayer to Pot (who Imagined booze)

<glug glug glug>

We gi’ thanksh to you, greatesht Pot
Fo’ de drinksh ‘n de foodsh ‘n de drinksh shome more

<glug glug glug>

We gi’ songsh o’ joyoush praishesh to yo’
Fo’ de friendsh new and old, who come to our do’

<glug glug glug>

We gi’ danshesh ‘n pranshesh ‘n shtumblingsh ‘ome
Fo’ tomorrah we’ll drinksh ‘n den drinksh shome more!

<glug glug thud>

This one is a mini-story.

With thanks to my dear friend Starless.

A Prayer to Alph

Once, long ago, when Ur was very different (and much younger, though how much is contentious) there were no stars in the sky.

Now, we know that stars are huge, flaming balls of gas, and the Sun that gives Ur its light is no different – in fact, it is flames and light that fuel our plants (except the Egg Plants, but again, that’s a different story)

In this dark and lonely night (It was always night, because there was no sun – it’s a star. Aren’t you paying attention?) one Glitch, recently sprung from the mind of a Giant when it accidentally imagined itself colliding with several other Giants, decided that they wanted… something more. Different.

That Glitch looked up into the inky sky, and they called forth:

“Alph! First of the Giants, beloved of the Sky
We need a guiding sense to see this world by!

You’ve given us so much to love and behold,
But we cannot see it! It’s terribly cold!

Please, help us to help you to wonder at All
That has come from the Giants! Please hear my call!”

Alph was feeling bored and lonely, and so when the tiny words of this tiny Glitch reached Him, He was filled with joy!

With a thought and a will
And bright mental light
Alph dreamed of STARS!
And ended the night!

The flames were so strong,
The light was so bright,
Alph set Ur to spinning!
To distribute delight.

The nights were still dark,
Skies blank as black cloth.
Alph dreamed up MORE stars!
And flung them aloft!

And the Glitch whose prayer
Brought this wonder to be
Was named by Alph “Starless”
To honor their plea!

Come back tomorrow for the next prayer! I wonder what it will be?!?

So, I play this game called Glitch.

Here’s my Glitch, Elle T. Bannion:

This is Elle T. Bannion, the Glitch, in her casual outfit.

It’s a very silly cooperative browser-based MMO with a wonderful community and a warm, accepting, friendly playerbase. I very strongly recommend that if you don’t know what it is, you investigate it immediately!

Anyway, as I become inspired, I’ve been writing short Prayers to each of the 11 Giants who feature prominently in Glitch lore. Here’s Elle in her Priestess of Tii outfit:

So. Without further ado, I present the first of 11 (probably) Prayers to the Giants.

A Prayer To Tii
(And The Others, But Slightly Less)

We Cannot Number the Bits of our Lives,
But Tii does for us.

We Cannot Number the Hearts we have Touched,
But Friendly does for us.

We Cannot Number the Trunks we have Hugged,
But Spriggan does for us.

We Cannot Number the Streams we have Crossed,
But Grendaline does for us.

We Cannot Number the Mountains which give us Humility,
But Zille does for us.

We Cannot Number the Flames of the Sun,
But Alph does for us.

We Cannot Number the Stars which for our Nights Guide us,
But Lem does for us.

We Cannot Number the Flanks we have Petted,
But Humbaba does for us.

We Cannot Number the Air which our Bodies Sustains,
But Cosma does for us.

We Cannot Number the Thoughts which our Lives Propel,
But Mab does for us,

We Cannot Number the Meals which our Bellies do Fill,
But Pot does for us.

The Giants Cannot Marvel at the Intricacies they have Wrought,
But We do so for Them.