Salem Witch Trial is another one of my poems that was inspired by my oldest daughter's gorgeous red hair. Salem Witch Trial is the original title of the poem, but at one point I changed the title to Sarah Bright - 1682. Sarah Bright is the name of the teenage fictional girl in the poem. I am curently working on a sequel to the Salem Witch Trial poem titled The haunting of Sarah Bright.
I hope you enjoy the poem. I have included an audio recording of the poem for those of you who would rather listen to the poem.
Salem Witch Trial
She'd stroll through the village,
eyes fixed on the ground.
When greeted the girl
scarcely uttered a sound.
Since her parents death
a few years back
she's lived on her own
in no more than a shack.
Her hair as red
as the fire of hell,
in the thoughts of men
her innocence fell.
They'd follow her in
the light of day,
besot by her
peculiar way.
They'd leave their wives
in the dark of night
to spy as she danced
beneath the moonlight.
One woman swore
by God that she witnessed
her reading a book
of magic so wicked.
No wonder her husband
held such foolish notions,
posessed by this witch
and all her love potions.
When questioned, the girl,
she could not tell,
what power had she
if not by spell;
Could take hold of a man,
lead him into temptation,
if not by witchcraft
or some incantation.
Her persuasion rooted
in evil they deemed.
Her protest heard
by way of her screams.
When they put her inside
the old metal pot,
it's with the will
of the devil himself
that she fought.
It was said her fate
would be redeemed
if her body
remained below surface.
Named pure again
in the eyes of God
by those who stood
to bear witness.
Fully submerged,
she struggled for air.
Sinking, the angel
with fire for hair.
With bibles in hand,
they gathered around.
Together they shouted,
while watching her drown.
Redemption then granted,
her sins pronounced clean,
by the men who condemned her
to death, at sixteen.
~ Christy Ann Martine
This hand typed Salem Witch Trial poem is now available on Etsy.
