[Steppes] playing persona

[wjwakefield@juno.com]

Fair greetings to you all.  I hight Suzanna, the herbalist I am called.
I grew up in a small village neere unto London by about a day's journey
(a day and a half an the roads be muddy).  I think you would know it not.
 When I was a child, Henry was King, but when he died, his son Richard
became King.  He is off to the Crusades now to save Jerusalem from the
infidel, and tales of his bravery abound.  Some are even calling him
Lion-hearte.  Whilst he is away, his mother, Queen Eleanor doth rule, and
methinks she doth very well at it.

Father owned three virgates of land, on which we had a fine stone house,
and grew crops and raised sheep and cattle.  The land was passed to him
from his father and his father before him several times, as one of my
forebears fought with William of Normandie when he came to England.  And
now I suppose my brothers work the land, may fortune smile on them and
their crops be good.

My mother was the healer for our village, and also tended the lord and
his family at the manor when they might be taken sick. From her did I
learn many things, including some strange ideas about washing often.
Mother said it helped the healing to wash often and keep things clean.
As she was a very good healer, I have kept to her teachings.  Mother came
to London with a Moorish caravan, and would never speak of her past.  It
was there she met Father and came to live in our village.  Some of the
villagers whispered that she bewitched my father, and some even said
"like father, like son".  But it was only that they loved each other
much, and he married her even though she had no dowry nor relations

My granny, who came from Ireland, taught me much of the herbs used in her
land.  She came to live in our village when my grandfather returned from
fighting with Henry to subdue the Irish barbarians.  He said she was
laying about her with a great sword, killing several men, when he was
sent to come upon her from behind and kill her.  But when he came upon
her, he captured her instead and brought her home with him.  Granny
always said she was a princess of Ireland, but I think she was not a
princess until she came to live in our village.

Also we did have Saxon cotters to help us work the land, and the woman,
Aelfric, was skilled in the Saxon wort kenning.  Oft did she and Mother
change receipts for some simple or other, and thus I did learn about
herbs from her as well.

I would have been content to stay in the village and follow in Mother's
footsteps, but it was not to be so.  The lord's favorite daughter took
ill, and he sent for the barber to treat her instead of Mother or me.
When at last he did send for me, the poor lass was beyond even my skills.
 The lord was quite wroth, so it seemed good that I should leave my
village.  In the course of my travels, I have had several small
adventures, until at last I came to Ansteorra, to these Steppes.  And
here I did meet my lord husband Agilwulf and his two children.  And here
we do dwell to this day.

Suzanna

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