The World According to Linda

Linda MacDonald-Lewis (A.K.A. The Bard at Large) - A true Scot at heart

Friday, April 30, 2010

Beltane Night is here....

Beltane is now here and many in Scotland are already on the hills with bonfires lit.
Groups are actively banishing the memory of the dark times of Winter and welcoming the Sun, in hopes of a fertile season to come.


So if you feel the urge to stomp the ground or howl at the moon...this may be your ancient Celtic mind....
so light a fire and dance around for awhile and you'll feel much better.

All the best,
Linda

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Beltane Night and an Upcoming event performance

Beltane Night is fast approaching and my story is not complete.

This year the story of Lindella, Nan and the Faeryfolk will continue through the season...until the telling is done and the story come to a close. This will remove the deadline and give me more time to give it the justice it deserves.

I will be leaving for the Douglas County Scot Society Mother's Day High Tea event in Sutherlin on May 8th.
My son MAY be running the shop in my absence...but he just recently hurt his neck in a fall and is the process of healing. We'll see if he's up to running the shop when the time comes. I'll be out of town for a few days ...to see me mum and do the gig.
See ya soon.
Linda

Friday, April 23, 2010

The Battle of Dublin- 23rd April 1014

Dublin ... 996 years ago the Norse and the Warriors of the Celtic Realm under the leadership of Great King Brian Boru prepared for a giant battle in Dublin. The Norse had been launching their advances from the Isle of Man. Boru spent many weeks gather the best strength of men to take the Norse on in Battle.
Boru lost his life, but not on the battlefield. (For the whole story check previous posts.)
In 2014 the 1000th Anniversary of this battle will be seen.
Not a bad time to head over to Ireland to see the events that will unfold.

Linda

Friday, April 16, 2010

Just a Note of Interest- about William Wallace and his Brother Malcolm

Recently...as has happened many, many times in the past...
someone came into the shop claiming connection through ancestry to William Wallace or his brother Malcolm.

I have been in contact with the Society of William Wallace in Scotland.
And just as a refresher course here....
there is no documented proof of any ability of ancestry coming from William Wallace's family...even if it is through his brother Malcolm.

Keep in mind that there were more than just one family of Wallaces in Scotland.

Cheers,
Linda

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Part 3 of the continuing story for Beltane Night

Many tasks would need to be done when she returned home with her gathered herbs and roots. She started ponder over the list of things she'd still need to do before the day was done.
She would have to separate the different items into groups and lay the herbs out in bundles to be strung upside down and hung from the ceiling for drying. The roots would have to be separated and laid out individually for drying as well.
Nan had a special shed that her father had built for her for this purpose. Open rafters where the herbs could be hung and long shelves lining the walls for the herbs to dry on. She visualized how she would do her work and where each of these found things would be placed.
While deep in thought about this and walking as fast as she could toward home...she passed to closely to a huge bramble and got her bulging sack caught on a twist of bramble thorns. She tugged at the sack to release it, gently at first with no success, then a bit harder, still no good. So she leaned the weight of her body into it a tugged as hard as she could...this time it let loose...but not without first tearing the sack. Some of her twigs and roots spilled out onto the ground (now become moist with the dew falling).

"Oh...hell's bells" Nan said under her breath as she put down the sack and started to gather up the spilled items and place them through the top opening. She sat down, removed the ribbon she'd had her hair tied back with and started to repair the hole in the bottom by tying it up with the ribbon. She could feel the moisture of the dew soaking through the back of her dress as she finished ans stood up....and there right in front of her face was a young blond haired man, with sharp blue eyes....not more than 3 inches from her face.
She gasped and stepped back..."Oh...I didn't see you there!"

"Oh...well I've been standing here for awhile watching you fix your sack. It looks quite heavy....may I help you by carrying it for you?" his face almost glowed he was so handsome.

Nan didn't know what to say ...still in shock from their first encounter.
"I don't remember ever seeing you here before....who are you? ....I mean ...I'm not one to take help from a stranger...and I don't know you."

"I am Gillian, ...there ...now you know me."and with that he picked up her sack and threw it over his shoulder and started to walk.

Nan unconsciously walked along side him and felt a bit dreamy every time she looked into his eyes, ....they were so blue.

"This sack is really filled to the brim and heavy...what is in here?" Gillian laughed.

"Herbs, twigs and roots for medicine....for the local people and their livestock. I needed to gather them today for the spring and summer season. Where do your people live?"

" Oh....here and there....we have a few homes here in the Highlands and move when the weather is right for one or the other. How did you learn about herbal lore ?"

"There was a woman here in the Glen that I would go with when she gathered her herbs and such when I was really young...she was a good friend of my mum's and I learned everything she had to teach me ....before she passed away...that was about 2 years ago. The rest came from books that I bought when we'd go into Inverness to buy supplies. I guess you could say I've been at this most of my life. Just something that I happen to be good at."

They talked and walked and before she knew it...she was at the edge of her parents field. darkness had fallen long before...but she hadn't notice. When they stopped there at the field's edge, suddenly she realized how late in had become. You could plainly see the blaze of the bonfires on the hillside and hear a low rumbling of music and laughter.
Gillian set down the heavy sack, "Well...here you are...safe and sound. But...you still haven't told me your name."

Nan's face flushed a bit with the abrupt realization that she didn't want this night to end, "I'm Nancy....but everyone calls me Nan."
She cast her eyes down so he couldn't see what she was thinking.

"Well, Nan...I would very much like to see you again. This has been very pleasant talking and walking with you, ....can we meet again?"

So the 2 stood and talked for a little longer and arrange to meet up again the next day...at evening time ...2 hours before dusk.

Nan bent over to pick up her sack...said "Good bye" and turned to walk home. Seconds later she turned again to look one more time at him as he walked away....but....he was no where to be seen. Nan shrugged this off ... thinking it must be a trick of the darkness.

End Part 3

Friday, April 09, 2010

Original First Portion of Beltane Night Story

For those of you that wish to read the first installment of this continued story...
look at the previous post Sept 2009 (fourth post down) where the story has been converted into one stream
for ease of reading. Next segment to the 2010 story of Nan and the faeryfolk will come next week.

Cheers,
Linda

Saturday, April 03, 2010

Part 2 of the continuing story for Beltane Night

Part 2

Then, ... mum paused to drink some more wine,  went to the bottle to pour more for herself and into Lindella's glass.

"I remember hearing this story many times in my youth....."

Lindella's father looked up from his book and fixed his eyes on his wife as she started the story.

"The weather had been fairly good for some time before your Nan set out that day.
She had been waiting for the right conditions in the air and the soil for her herb and root gathering.
There had been no rain for just the right amount of time and the soil should be dry and loose enough for the roots to slip out of the soil without damaging their delicate nature when fresh.
She woke up very early that day, the sun was not even above the horizon. But, there was just enough dim light for her to start her journey. Nan had marked the plants bearing the roots she needed back in the Autumn when the whole plant could easily be found and identified. She had waited patiently through the wet and cold weather for this day, but this was late in the season and Beltane Night was just hours away so she would have to make haste to get this done.
She bundled up her sack and some food and drink to carry with her and headed out before the birds had woke up.

The dew was still covering the ground as she made her way, about a mile from her home to the first of the marked areas to start her work. By the time she arrived the sun was breaking the horizon and the birds were chirping away and swooping around her in their mid-air dance.
She worked as fast as she could to fill her sack only stopping once as the sun was high in the sky to eat and have some tea she'd brought along that day. She even ate faster than normal so she could get back to her quest, still having much to do and more grounds to cover.

Nan had been on the open moor gathering herbs, roots, and various unusual items for the better part of the mid-afternoon.

Some of the roots needed to be dug now before the sap started to run upwards to create the new growth of Spring. This would be the last time these particular types could be brought in to dry and store this season. She had wander very far in search of this root and would need as much as possible for the treatment of new lambs for digestive vitality and a salve for the cows udders.
This same root would help young infant with colic, sparing the parents from the woe of hearing their newly borne child crying because of stomach problems. There had been many a time, she'd had to advise women that were feeding their child with her own milk, that they would have to 'stop eating haggis for awhile'. The ingredients would have an effect on not only her digestive system but ...that same problem would be passed on through the milk to the babe. 

Before she realized she had wandered many miles from the croft and even farther from the hills beyond, where she could see the bonfires had already been lit, the flames looked golden in the still dimly lit sky. At the sight of this she suddenly realized darkness would be upon her soon.

She gathered up her last root and shoved it into the clothe sack she'd been filling all day, now heavy with herbs, roots, and twigs. Nan threw the sack over her shoulder and started her trek toward home.
Nan hurried along the heather clad pathway working her way back to her home.
She was quite pleased with herself and the amount of medicinals she had gathered that day. She hummed an old tune while she made her way home."
  End Part 2