Choices

I came across a band called Blackmore’s Night recently and have become a bit of a fan. They’re quite eclectic in their choice of material, but this one from their early days has become a favourite. It’s so simple in form and execution, and yet it has an innocent charm which evokes an image of giggling and dancing with the comeliest of the village maidens around a camp fire high in the hills.

  

But now I’m in a quandary with regard to my next life. Should I marry the priestess and enter the elevated life of Emperor and Empress of China – ruling with unrivalled wisdom, dispensing equitable justice, and persuading the peasants to forget all that rubbish about winning and losing and concentrate instead on just being nice to each other – or should I aim for a simple life in a rustic community and focus on having fun with comely village maidens? Maybe the priestess will have something to say on the matter.

(It seems the old imagination is recuperating well, but the penchant for silliness is still a little short of a teaspoon.)