We do indeed, just today. But my cousin, who writes from Carlisle, has not long had blackthorn begin!
I was inspired by the Japanese 72 micro-seasons, and a few of us Mark each 5-day season with a 'noticing'. You'd be very welcome to join us...email me a number and I'll add you x
Nice, Janey. My friend Jan Elisabeth here in Finistère has been working with that form. It's neat. I'm tempted, but am so over-committed this isn't the right time for me. Thank you for inviting me though! Rx
May 1st marks the beginning of our twentieth year in France, we have never ever known such cold and wet weather at this time as we are experiencing now… you first paragraph made me smile… with the exception of two days mid April our fire has not been left to die… and now we are out of logs again!
The devastation here after this weeks torrential and continuous rainfall is horrendous… five old oaks now lay with their roots in the air, two roads have been closed due subsidence and the river (usually nothing more than a stream) at the bottom of the valley has burst over the banks and filled the fields to each side… and this is just within a 1km radius.
I wait for the sequel of summer with trepidation while trying hard to remain optimistic but honestly, it’s not easy.
Oh no Susie I knew there were parts further south that had had severe flooding (and that poor woman killed when a mudslide demolished her house) but I hadn't realised it had affected you so badly – oh those poor oaks.
And I've still only seen an occasional swallow, and this is May. :-(.
I'm away to the UK next week, and daren't plant out beans and sweet potatoes till the weather, and ground, are warmer.
Thank you for connecting me with May Day in such a beautiful, elegant way with deep knowing of old Celtic life-ways!! I feel joy.
And May Day being perhaps 4000 years old, and an agricultural festival/rite, makes me wonder that it would still have pre-agricultural roots. What do you think of this?
Again I love the mid-way moment, now between Equinox and Solstice coming. And love hearing about Cernunnos. And is the story of Camelot and King Arthur and Guinevere representative of one of the old King Arthur cycles or tales?
And So -- Hawthorn Day Blessings to you! And of the surrendering to wind, to seafret and rainfall, to the deep lodestones of the ores beneath your roots…
Oh I love your last sentence, Rebecca! Seems I've forgotten the wisdom of surrender these days. Thank you for your kind words.
I think it's more than likely that it had pre-agricultural roots, though that puts it deep into the neolithic here (some of the megaliths might have been raised then, though not the stone circles which were largely Bronze Age). I think one can only speculate, but fertility rites are indeed very old.
Camelot/Arthur/Guinevere – so many versions, many of them from the early mediaeval period, though there are recognisable predecessors – or relevant archetypes – from pre-mediaeval oral and sometimes written sources too, yes.
So glad the post brought you joy! That's the nicest thing you could say. Rx
Thank you Jan. As I wrote I wondered if your hawthorns were already out – ours is a little frost-pocket here, but I haven't seen any round about yet. x
I’ve recently been reading an old book of Gaelic folklore and superstitions and it mentioned that a probable derivation of Beltane - or Bealltainn in Gaelic, is teine, being fire and beall from an opening, a mouth or a pass. I found that interesting and have always thought the first part of the word was indeed from the deity Baal. I wondered what you thought? Love your interesting posts Roselle, keep up the good work!
Ah 'teine' – fire – makes sense, Chris. Bel is indeed Baal, as far as I know, the old sun-god (sun-gods are often but not always synonymous with 'fire' god; for instance, I'm not sure Lugh or Llew, Lud, was a 'sun' god, though he was definitely a fire-god. Actually, I'll check that. He might have been both.) But no I didn't know about 'pass' or 'mouth' - 'opening'. I imagine that's more than the sun's passage across the heavens. Thank you Chris for giving me something to chew on.
Milder I think here, but still too cold for me, and yesterday I lit a driftwood fire in the hearth.
My little WhatsApp group and I are marking the 18th 'micro-season', and this was my 'noticing' this morning -
'Away from the breeze, hawthorn blossoms in the sheltering hedgerows'
Blessings to you x
You mean a few hundred miles further north from us you have HAWTHORN IN FLOWER??
That's a lovely little near-haiku. Thank you. Rx
We do indeed, just today. But my cousin, who writes from Carlisle, has not long had blackthorn begin!
I was inspired by the Japanese 72 micro-seasons, and a few of us Mark each 5-day season with a 'noticing'. You'd be very welcome to join us...email me a number and I'll add you x
Nice, Janey. My friend Jan Elisabeth here in Finistère has been working with that form. It's neat. I'm tempted, but am so over-committed this isn't the right time for me. Thank you for inviting me though! Rx
Belated Beltane wishes Roselle💚🍃
May 1st marks the beginning of our twentieth year in France, we have never ever known such cold and wet weather at this time as we are experiencing now… you first paragraph made me smile… with the exception of two days mid April our fire has not been left to die… and now we are out of logs again!
The devastation here after this weeks torrential and continuous rainfall is horrendous… five old oaks now lay with their roots in the air, two roads have been closed due subsidence and the river (usually nothing more than a stream) at the bottom of the valley has burst over the banks and filled the fields to each side… and this is just within a 1km radius.
I wait for the sequel of summer with trepidation while trying hard to remain optimistic but honestly, it’s not easy.
Stay warm and dry xxxx
Oh no Susie I knew there were parts further south that had had severe flooding (and that poor woman killed when a mudslide demolished her house) but I hadn't realised it had affected you so badly – oh those poor oaks.
And I've still only seen an occasional swallow, and this is May. :-(.
I'm away to the UK next week, and daren't plant out beans and sweet potatoes till the weather, and ground, are warmer.
20 years! Well done. xx
I love this poem!
Woke to haar this morning, brrr, though it was 17 degrees Celsius yesterday afternoon.
Hello Jay – lovely to hear from you and imagine Scotland! 17º? We got up to 13º... amazing how cold it can be here.
Thanks for kind words on my poem. Rx
Roselle,
Thank you for connecting me with May Day in such a beautiful, elegant way with deep knowing of old Celtic life-ways!! I feel joy.
And May Day being perhaps 4000 years old, and an agricultural festival/rite, makes me wonder that it would still have pre-agricultural roots. What do you think of this?
Again I love the mid-way moment, now between Equinox and Solstice coming. And love hearing about Cernunnos. And is the story of Camelot and King Arthur and Guinevere representative of one of the old King Arthur cycles or tales?
And So -- Hawthorn Day Blessings to you! And of the surrendering to wind, to seafret and rainfall, to the deep lodestones of the ores beneath your roots…
OXO
Oh I love your last sentence, Rebecca! Seems I've forgotten the wisdom of surrender these days. Thank you for your kind words.
I think it's more than likely that it had pre-agricultural roots, though that puts it deep into the neolithic here (some of the megaliths might have been raised then, though not the stone circles which were largely Bronze Age). I think one can only speculate, but fertility rites are indeed very old.
Camelot/Arthur/Guinevere – so many versions, many of them from the early mediaeval period, though there are recognisable predecessors – or relevant archetypes – from pre-mediaeval oral and sometimes written sources too, yes.
So glad the post brought you joy! That's the nicest thing you could say. Rx
thanks
xo
Wonderful post -- and yes -- so cold! And wet too -- though at least the aquefers are filling, but I'm longing for hawthorn x
Thank you Jan. As I wrote I wondered if your hawthorns were already out – ours is a little frost-pocket here, but I haven't seen any round about yet. x
I’ve recently been reading an old book of Gaelic folklore and superstitions and it mentioned that a probable derivation of Beltane - or Bealltainn in Gaelic, is teine, being fire and beall from an opening, a mouth or a pass. I found that interesting and have always thought the first part of the word was indeed from the deity Baal. I wondered what you thought? Love your interesting posts Roselle, keep up the good work!
Ah 'teine' – fire – makes sense, Chris. Bel is indeed Baal, as far as I know, the old sun-god (sun-gods are often but not always synonymous with 'fire' god; for instance, I'm not sure Lugh or Llew, Lud, was a 'sun' god, though he was definitely a fire-god. Actually, I'll check that. He might have been both.) But no I didn't know about 'pass' or 'mouth' - 'opening'. I imagine that's more than the sun's passage across the heavens. Thank you Chris for giving me something to chew on.
And thank you, Chris, for your kind words :-). X
Thanks for your thoughts. The pass or opening made me think of passing the cattle between 2 fires as you mentioned. Fascinating stuff!
A beautiful poem to set off the fascinating piece.
Oh thank you Marg. I feared it was a bit so-so, so(!) I'm glad you enabled me to see it with fresh eyes :-). x