Letters to my great-granddaughter- The Assasination of Mary

Dear Charly, 

This is the story of the assassination of Mary. 

It was a dark, stormy night. As the rain slapped noisily against my window, all I could think about was completing my task. I sat in my old dilapidated room contemplating the plan. Ms. Y had come to me with the job. The target was Mary.

Mary had been making enemies or maybe not, I didn't care. My job was to take her out. In my line of work, many get paid for the services they render, but I do it because I enjoy it. I can't say many of my "colleagues" don't enjoy it much either but some of them end up in a shrink's chair. For me this is somewhat of a hobby. There's a joy that comes with taking existence, isn't there? A little laugh bubbles somewhere deep in your throat as you stare at the lifeless corpse you made. One minute there is life, a rhythmic thumping, a pulse - next, stillness, quietness. 

Mary like everyone else would experience the stillness soon. She'd be removed, forced to cease, forced to rest in peace or in the Lord or in a pit. I smiled, almost fondly. I know Mary myself, we work together and I had thought knowing her firsthand would make the job harder, not in the slightest, in fact, I was ever so enthusiastic. I had no motive to kill either, so I guess the murder would never be traced back to me. The joys of getting away with murder, I giggled to myself as I polished my weapon. I'd write a book one day; How to Get Away with Murder, except someone beats me to it first. 

Early the next morning, Mary was found dead at her desk. A couple of us knew who did it. Not to worry, i wasn't the only one who took Mary out, it was more of a group effort. We all chipped in at the office, a little stab here, another there, the same way we chipped in to buy her a chocolate frosted birthday cake last June. Now she was out cold, face ashen and mouth agape.

Just in case you have never thought about gossiping and backbiting this way, this is exactly what it is, Charly. The moment you open your pretty mouth to slander another person, you literally just killed the person. It's actually called "character assassination"; dishonoring another individual. People do stupid things, people do crazy things, people do down-right weird stuff but it's not your place to judge. Never was, never will be. When the gist comes your way, let it slide. Forget it and don't relate with the person based on what you heard. 

I've done my own share of gossiping, probably enough to cover the next four generations of my progeny (another reason you don't have to). I've learnt to reconfigure my mind through a deliberate process, not to speak ill of people and to wish them the best, even if they slip up. Catch yourself when you can and stop polishing your weapon, someone might just be pointing a nozzle your way.

Love,

Great gran x 

No one was hurt in the making of this post! If your name is Mary, I have nothing against you. Marys are my fave!