For Winter is a coming in
And Summers’s gone away-O.
(inverted twist on “Hal an Tow” lyrics by Damh the Bard)
Fall’s Here and Winter’s A-Comin’
Author: blueseas
The Legend of John Barleycorn
Here’s an article that I wrote for the 2023 Lughnasadh edition of the Òran Mór Celtic E‐Zine that looks into the Scottish legend of John Barleycorn and the traditional songs associated with it.
Lughnasadh on the Homestead Remixed
As we spiral through the cycles of the seasons on our homestead, Lughnasadh comes to us as a time of balance … between sacrifice and blessing, hard work and reward, safety and danger.
Hard Work and Great Beauty
After three years of drought, the rains of spring have brought an incredible intensity of life to our homestead… plants flourishing in variegated shades of green, flowers blossoming in profusion, and the bushes bending heavy with fruit. As we work hard to harvest the crop and complete projects before the coming of winter, it is wonderful to stop for a little while and enjoy the great beauty of Nature around us.
Hawthorn: The May Tree
The Hawthorn, a tree that displays a prolific splendour of white or pink flowers at the beginning of May, is known by a variety of different names, such as “The May Tree“, “The Beltane Tree“, “The May Blossom“, “The Whitethorn“, “The Quick“, or simply the “May“.
Bringing Home a Tractor
We finally did it!! We bought ourselves a little tractor and figured out how to get it to our homestead!
Writing Poetry
I’ve been reading a lot of Irish mythology in the last little while. Looking at the English translations of the Old Irish (Gaelic), it is easy to see that many of these stories were once oral poems (probably originally translated from Proto-Celtic by the Christian monks). That got me to thinking about poetry …
Mourning the Loss of a Friend
A good friend has passed on. We are shocked by the suddenness of it, and saddened by the knowledge that his presence in this world is lost to us, that we shall not share another smile at the joys of life or spend another trip exploring the wilderness of this land together .
Spirits of Samhain
Just for fun, here’s a little historical fiction short story that I put together recently, based on the Irish Iron Age culture.
Lughnasadh on the Homestead
I wrote this little color piece for an e-zine back in August. It captures some of the joys and fears of summertime on our homestead.