The Life and Times of Scott Burch.

[Colossians3]

This historical fiction journal was quite rushed, therefore it is probably less than adequate. I actually haven't reread it, either, so grammatical mistakes most likely remain. Also, for each entry, I was told to have a certain topic. For example, I have to talk about a new invention in one of them, and I have to travel somewhere in another. Without further ado, here it is:

10 September 1193.

Taxation here in Mansfield, England is quite heavy (“Touring”). I am becoming more desperate by the day. The atmosphere of this small-market town I grew up in now ceases to be fain. Things were so wonderful in my childhood – practicing my archery with my best friend, Will Gamewell, spending time with my family, having food enough to eat (Finnemore 38). Everything I knew as a child has been transmuted into this terrible world of today. Starvation, suffering, and corruption plague this once peaceful world. To escape this violence, I am contemplating joining my friend Will Gamewell in the company of the already legendary Robert Fitzooth, known by many as Robin Hood (“Robin Hood Skygaze”). Stories of this Robin Hood have spread far and wide through minstrels as well as word of mouth. His deeds are not going unnoticed. England is in need of a leader whilst our true king, Richard the Lionhearted, is away. Richard had departed not long ago to fight in the Third Crusade, but he was captured by Duke Leopold of Austria and is now being held for ransom (Corrick 35). The tyrannical leaders left in his stead have managed to seemingly turn this country to hell.

Before departing to join his friend, Robin Hood, Will left me instruction on how to find them. I can find them at the Gallow’s Oak in Sherwood Forest. This information is cryptic, and I must be stealthy if I do choose to join Robin and his band.

Such indecision I face: to risk my life and follow Robin, or to live in poverty and suffer unjust punishment here? If the taxes were for a just cause – such as paying for King Richard’s ransom – I would have no problem giving what I could. But this is ridiculous. Prince John is stealing the money of fellow commoners and me. Something must be done, and soon.

 

[Colossians3]

14 April 1193.

Well, I have done it. As I write this, I am sitting betwixt my friend Will, now known here in Sherwood as Will Scarlet, and Robin Hood himself around a campfire. I am clad in my Lincoln green clothing, featuring a remarkable new invention known as clothing buttons (“Inventions”).

Robin has an aura about him, and I feel it as I sit here beside him. It is quite humbling. Robin is like a savior to us, here to fight for and protect the commoners of England such as myself. I have become a simple yeoman, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Some may call Robin an outlaw; such a statement denotes ignorance of epic proportions. He is the very definition of selfless, risking his life to steal from the rich and, not saving it for self-fortune, giving to the poor (Finnemore 56).

I have made many friends here in the forest, ranging from the lovable Little John to the mutton-joint-devouring Friar Tuck (Finnemore 43). I enjoy fighting for what I believe to be right. In such dark times as these, somebody must fight. I am pleased to serve not only Robin Hood, but, above all, God. I believe our conduct to be God’s will, for God opposes the unrighteous. Friar Tuck teaches such lessons to us daily. We are very blessed to have him as our shepherd.

Well, I now must be getting some rest. We had a bit of an encounter with some of the sheriff’s men today, and I am worn out. We had no casualties of any sort, so I am thankful for that. Many men of my band of brothers enjoy relaxation induced by consuming several - if not many - tankards of ale, but I do not enjoy ale one bit. I prefer water, myself. Enough talk, time for my nap. Nothing keeps a man atop his wits like forty winks.

 

[Colossians3]

17 May 1194.


I awoke this morning to a most beautiful day. Love is in the air. Today will certainly be a day to remember, for it is the day in which our hero, Robin Hood, marries the love of this life, Maid Marian.

I do not believe I’ve said much about Robin’s relationship with Marian, so I’ll write a bit about that. As Allan-a-Dale, a minstrel in our band, sang a few weeks ago: (“Middle Ages”).

With kisses sweet their red lips meet,

For shee and the earl did agree;

In every place, they kindly imbrace,

With love and sweet unity. (Wright).

There was much more to this ballad of Robin and Marian, but ‘twould take too long to write the entire thing out. Stephen Wright and Thomas Ohlgren enjoy the ballad, but they do not believe that it will ever become popular (Wright).

May seventeenth… such a blessed day. Robin is a man of pure heart, and his sweetheart, Marian, is the sweetest girl in all of England. After their wedding today, I congratulated each of them by saying, “You two are soooo cute!” Yes, I know, I’m quite a silly yeoman. I tend to get this way when I’m as happy as I am.

The men’s spirits are higher than ever. Most of them are completely drunk from the celebration party, which I find to be quite hilarious. These men are my brothers – my dearest friends – and they are always good for a laugh. Tuck performed the wedding ceremony today. Again, today was a great day.

 

[Colossians3]

14 July 1194.

I am just about to depart from Sherwood with Will to visit his dear sister, Jamie, in York. He hasn’t seen her in ages, and he just received word from her of her whereabouts, so he decided that he absolutely must pay her a visit. Of course, Will, being my childhood friend, invited me to come along to visit as well. I always did like Jamie; she is quite an extraordinary young woman. So I, obviously, agreed to come along, and here I am, preparing for the journey. I plan to pick some flowers on the road there to give to her. Perhaps it is not yet too late to win her heart. Maybe she’ll even end up joining us in the greenwood. I can only dream of such luck. From what I could tell, she used to have quite a little crush on me, but that was years ago. She never seemed like the outdoor type, so I very much doubt that she’ll agree to join us in Sherwood. However, York is just as poverty ridden as Mansfield was, so it is a possibility. Will and I will be riding our horses to York in this multi-day journey. We will surely come across several minstrels in our journey (“Middle Ages”). I cannot wait to hear some more tales of Robin as sang by a minstrel whilst playing a vielle (King 30).

As always, Prince John is treacherous (Langer 212). Will and I must be cautious as we venture from Sherwood on our own. I am not worried one bit, though. Will and I both miss Jamie so much that we’re more than willing to take this risk to see her. I’m beginning to get butterflies in my stomach just thinking about her. I’m sure Will is nervous, too, since he has not seen her in years, but his nervousness is of a completely different cause, being that she is his sister.

 

[Colossians3]

3 November 1199.

Wow, I simply cannot believe all that has happened since last I wrote. It has been nearly five and a half years now. Allow me to catch up… After the aforementioned trip in which Will and I traveled to York to visit his sister, Jamie, Jamie and I realized that we still had feelings for each other. Therefore, we returned to the greenwood to be wed by Friar Tuck, just as Robin and Marian had done. We have been living very happily ever since – the best years of our lives have been in this short period of time.

King Richard was recently killed, and Prince John is now King John. John is cruel, mean, licentious, faithless, weak in will, and without counterbalancing virtues (Langer 212). I have nothing to fear, though. I will continue to live here in the forest with my wife as I have been doing for years. We are safe here, along with the other outlaws; we are like one big family.

Robin is still quite upset about the passing of Richard. His archenemy, John, is now seated on the throne – the very place Robin tried so hard to keep him out of all those years (Finnemore 265). Robin is now thirty-nine years old, by our reckoning (“Robin Hood Skygaze”). He is still in superb physical condition, though he has taken many blows throughout the years that have hindered him physically. However, he is now happily settled with Marian and they have three children.

This journal entry is decidedly my last. I have a wonderful life ahead of me, and I needn’t a journal to remember all the events that have occurred.

 

[Colossians3]

The End.

No need to report grammatical mistakes to me, for my teacher shall be doing so in a matter of days.

Thanks for reading!