VII. בָּרד

Exodus, 9:22-35

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that hail will fall all over Egypt—on people and animals and on everything growing in the fields of Egypt.” When Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. So the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt; hail fell and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. Throughout Egypt hail struck everything in the fields—both people and animals; it beat down everything growing in the fields and stripped every tree. The only place it did not hail was the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were. 

Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he said to them. “The LORD is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. Pray to the LORD, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let you go; you don’t have to stay any longer.” Moses replied, “When I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands in prayer to the LORD. The thunder will stop and there will be no more hail, so you may know that the earth is the LORD’s. But I know that you and your officials still do not fear the LORD God.” (The flax and barley were destroyed, since the barley had headed and the flax was in bloom. The wheat and spelt, however, were not destroyed, because they ripen later.) 

Then Moses left Pharaoh and went out of the city. He spread out his hands toward the LORD; the thunder and hail stopped, and the rain no longer poured down on the land. When Pharaoh saw that the rain and hail and thunder had stopped, he sinned again: He and his officials hardened their hearts. So Pharaoh’s heart was hard and he would not let the Israelites go, just as the LORD had said through Moses.

Hypogastrura nivicola

The Dance of Fire and Ice

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02.11.25

The infection of Decay is getting worse, I didn't think it was airborne but I can't imagine another reason why it would start wracking my body this fast even as I'm holed up here. I'm trying to be brave, I'm trying to starve it. I promise I'm doing my best. But I can't not admit that I'm scared. I'm only human and it knows that, so it knows I'll keep feeding it what it wants. Until there's none of me left.

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    I smell smoke every day. There's a legion of snow fleas that have started leaving trails of fire surrounding the building, they laugh in the voices of people I've lost. The flames lick their way along the outside brick wall and I cover my ears as the sounds of insects clicking and screeching scrape through the laughter of the past, present, and future. The voice of a butterfly asks me if I am ready to die. 

No. Not quite.