Chapter+1

=**__Story: Ch1 __**= Drifting into consciousness, I heard the last clear ring of the church bell that was waking the monastery. I rose from my straw bed and walked down to the prayer room. A photo of the dormitory in Valle Crucis Abbey, Northen Wales

I looked at the beautiful architecture; the biblical paintings; the darkness, all which made me feel small. Most of the monks were already there, so I took a position quickly. We kneeled down as one, as the abbot read the bible in a loud, shrilling voice. A tune was running through my head, one from the previous day’s church services. I almost fell back to sleep, but half-woke to find those around me mumbling prayers, my mouth doing the same. A chorus of ‘Amen’ was whispered, that echoed around the seemingly empty room. Chapter 2