These are the letters from the fourth day of the Grading
War. If you landed here by accident and don’t know what you’re reading,
click here for the backstory.
8 December 2013, 11:35pm
My Dearest Leigh,
It is my sincere hope that these few words find you well. I have had no
time to write, hence the extended delay since my last note to you.
Please know that I find it an Exceeding Joy to hear from you. Your every
written expression is a salve to me. Indeed, I count your letters as
one of the more tangible bits of sustenance that I am able to receive.
Please know that I share the burden of fatigue and exasperation with
you. Sadly, I too have had to engage our worthy opponents. Just two days
ago, we received word that the Rebels had moved to a position
dangerously close to our own, and that they were amassing troops,
perhaps to engage us in one last bloody encounter. And so, last night we
were awakened by the Colonel and made to march to a new position. We
maintained a small sliver of hope that this new area would strengthen
our position, but we were mistaken. The Enemy struck at us, with a force
I had not seen matched in previous encounters. I have been in pitched
battle for the last two days. Regrettably, like you, I too found myself
face to face with our Adversary – a grim face young man. He ignored my
entreaties and appeals to reason. Indeed, he countered them with
half-truths, innuendo and a cascade of falsity that shook me to my very
core. His every Pronouncement was a Perversion, his every Assertion
Laden with Inaccuracy. He was confident, overly so. But, like Icarus,
the persistent overestimation of his abilities proved to be his undoing.
In the end, Justice – and Judgment – won out. Pride does indeed go
before The Fall.
As to your question, my
cherished friend,
about whether we are on the side of right – this I cannot say. I can
give you no answer to this that would not in turn give me pause. But I
do know this – you are most correct when you say they are like us. My
Adversary from the other day, he was but an echo of my younger self. The
calumnies that tumbled past his lips remain lodged in my ears because I
too uttered them a short time ago. Yes, you are right. They are like
us. They ARE us. And perhaps, since they are in fact us, perhaps this is
why we must engage in this Struggle. In an earlier letter, one that I
will cherish to the end of my days, you spoke of the necessity of Hope.
And now, Dearest Leigh, perhaps it is time for us to consider another
one of the Gifts of Providence – Faith. I have Faith in the Worthiness
of Our High and Noble Cause. I have Faith that this wretched Grading War
is Fought for a Purpose, to stand against Error, Miscalculation and
Ignorance. I have Faith that my Comrades Vincent, Amy, Stephanie, David,
and Susan share this belief, and will continue to fight alongside me.
And I have Faith in you.
And so I Fight, buoyed by the Faith that my effort, our effort, will
not be in vain. I fight with the Faith that the trail we blaze with our
actions will make a way for others to continue the Battle. As Hopeless
as it may seem, it is Faith that would have us strive to leave a
footprint in the disappearing sand so that, as Longfellow says, “A
forlorn and shipwrecked brother, Seeing, shall take heart again.
Today has been a long day. I spent the most of it engaged in this
cursed struggle, and will do so again tomorrow. But I will cherish your
correspondence and it will help sustain me, God Willing, through to the
end of this melee. As ever, I hope that you and your allies remain safe.
Yours in Eternal Friendship,
Charles W. McKinney
Click here to proceed to DAY FIVE of the Grading War Letters