9 May 2024, @mariannewest's Freewrite Writing Prompt Day 2367: origin of evil

Photo by Ben Wicks on Unsplash

“Look, I'm not interested in where evil came from! I'm interested in getting rid of it! At some point people gotta get their priorities straight!”

Eight-year-old Edwina Ludlow was responding to a book that her ten-year-old brother Andrew had found dropped on the cul-de-sac: The Origin of Evil. The book actually belonged to the Veteran's Lodge library and someone had dropped it, and of course the children's grandfather, Capt. R.E. Ludlow, would see that the book would be returned, but in the meantime, the conversation was going right on.

“But, Eddie,” Andrew said, “sometimes you have to know where a thing came from before you can send it back. Origin means beginning.”

Edwina considered this.

“You know, that person could have been doing research at the library about that – you got a point, Andy, you got a point there, but you know, it's all explained in the first three chapters of the Bible. If it's me, you already know I'm done with researching all the rest and then gone over to where they have the fashion magazines.”

“But, Eddie, this is housing for military veterans. They fight more and fashion less.”

“And that's another thing, Andy! Can you get me the number of President Trump – and then get me the number of Senator Biden too, just in case? I gotta cover all bases here – I mean, Papa looks good in his uniforms, and Cousin Harry does in his police uniform too, but they really do need an update on this. Blue is nice, but West Point needs to get with the program, because between them and the Navy, we're just about blued out here.”

“Um, what colors did you have in mind for the Army makeover?”

“I don't think the Army is ready for the real, deep, spiritual purple I'm thinking about, but –.”

That was all Capt. R.E. Ludlow heard before he had to leave the scene, vanquished in laughter.

“Don't you want to know what color you and your colonel cousin are going to be wearing for real, though?” Mrs. Ludlow said to her husband's rapidly retreating back.

“I actually want to see what spiritual purple looks like, though,” Mrs. Maggie Lee said as she started putting out fruit cups for dessert. “As intense as Harry's faith is, he's not doing that for his colonel's uniform, but he might get a regular tie for church.”