Out with the Old

And today I tackled the junk drawer, clearing away all the rubbish and keeping only useful things like clothes brush, DIY tools, hair dryer and all the bits you have to keep in case you ever move your washing machine. I also scrubbed the drawer and lined it with green leafy shelf paper. Something's happening all right. This kind of activity - clearing drains, tossing junk - bodes well. I am cleaning up my act and making room for BIG THINGS to come.

Down the Drain

From the sublime to the ridiculous. Today, it was unclog-the-drains time. (Hmm.) That meant rubber gloves, plunger, bleach, and kettles of boiling water. Where does the black gucky stuff come from?! Anyway, they are all smelling like roses now, or should I say lavender, the bathroom sink and the bath and the kitchen sink as well. Along with that, I got cracking on The Book of Dreams and tomorrow I am being interviewed by Brian Tubridy for RTE Radio (brag brag), but the latter stuff belongs in Book Blog, so do pop over there for the rest of the story.

Into the Dreaming

Went walkabout into the Dreamtime yesterday. Magic. Set off with my trusty sidekick Dave for a solstice ritual being held at Jampa Ling Buddhist Centre in County Cavan. As we passed Tara Hill on our way north, we decided to stop in and give our regards to the High Kings of Ireland. No sooner were we walking the great circuit of the mounds than I heard the sound of a rattle ringing out through the air. "He's doing a shamanic ritual!" I said, though I had no idea to whom I was referring. Off I ran, down the next hill and there, around a fairy tree, was a circle of people; and leading invocations to the Mother Earth and the Sídhe was my own shamanic teacher, Martin Duffy, whom I hadn't seen in years. (You can check out his work on www.shamanismireland.com). We stayed for the fairy blessings and then off we went to Jampa Ling for more magic. "Offering bath-puja" involved prayers in the shrine room with jugs of saffron water, mirrors, peacock feathers, green boughs, and silken scarves of blue and white. Then, in a long line following Des, who was blessing everything with holy water, we paraded out into the grounds, gardens, fields, and forest carrying sacred objects and sticks of incense while ringing bells, clanging cymbals, flashing mirrors, and chanting - om vajra sattva hum. Oh, and Damian was blowing on a huge conch. I swear, we looked and sounded like a fairy cavalcade.

New Life!

Utterly thrilling. Not long back from Dublin City, where I went to Hollis Street Maternity Hospital to meet my friend's new baby; a darling little boy with dark Tibetan eyes. Tashi delek, Sherab! Just wandering through the wards was a walk back through time and memories of the birth of my own beautiful Findabhair. I couldn't help but smile at all the new fathers, walking their babies in the halls, with such proud, abashed faces. And all the new mothers resting in their beds, smiling with satisfaction at the little cots beside them. Congratulations, I kept saying to them, how wonderful, how wonderful. In one room there was a cot with two fat babies in it. Oh my goodness, two! And the mother beamed happily. Yes, two! And we laughed. Dave was busily looking for our friend, but I wanted to see everybody's baby!

Green Party Party

My feet are sore from dancing all night at the Wicklow Arms in Delgany. Deirdre de Burca held a dance for her supporters and to celebrate the fact that the Green Party is going into government for the first time in Irish history. Now it's a dicey proposition. They are in bed with the devil, the casually corrupt Fianna Fail party which has ruled here forever, but which didn't achieve a majority in the last election. As with all small parties going into coalition, the Greens will suffer for this when Fianna Fail won't. On the other hand, however, it's incredible that such a young and radical party could actually get that close to the power core. The experience will be good for them. Let's just hope they won't have to pay too dearly for it!

The Summer King (Trailer, Fan Made, Remastered)

My intrepid fan has remade her trailer for The Summer King. It's even better than the first one. Have a look!

Back to the Source

If there's one thing a Sagittarian has to do regularly it's climb a mountain. So here's me on Mullaghcor, yesterday. It was a gorgeous sunny day and a gang of us from the Second Sunday hillwalking group headed out on a Saturday for a change, to accomodate two Swedish lads. There was a picnic as always on the grassy hillside - sandwiches, tea in a thermos, oranges, strawberries, dark chocolate, and crisps. At one point I walked alone (as is my wont) and inhaled the green of pine and blue of sky, to take back with me to infuse my work. There are times when I fall from Grace and into the dark and it is these communings with Nature that re-connect me to the Source and the shining stream of life (Mythopoeic writers use a lot of capitals, don't we? I guess because we like to write about the Big Things. )

To a Different Drum

Jaze, have to laugh at that last post. Spot the love-lorn author. But here's my good news. I have found myself a new drumming teacher, hurrah! He's got a jazz background which is perfect, as that is my real interest, and I can't wait to start. Need to dust off the drum kit and practise before my first lesson. It's been wayyyyy too long.

Snowy White - Bird Of Paradise

The video is utterly naff (check out those shoes) but God I love the song and that guitar. Came out in 1984, I think. I remember arriving in Ireland, lost and lonely, and my cousin Donal playing it for me.

The Once and Future

It's typical of my family that one of my sisters would have a big stone in her back yard which managed to acquire a sword. All of us have always spoken of "Wart" in an intimate manner. One time someone asked if he was a relation or family friend. "Nope. He's King Arthur." I am just back from the sunny west of County Clare where I was celebrating a friend's 50th birthday and the opening of his exhibition. He sold 15 paintings in the first night. Well done, Frank Golden. Then we all retired to Linnane's for a big spread of clams, crabs, mussels, and shrimp along with singing and dancing. The craic was ninety. Next morning was a huge breakfast outdoors in the sunshine (it was lashing on the east coast; God forgive us, we laughed) and a guest hike along the Flaggy Shore. Then another feast in the evening. I will post photographs as soon as I figure out how to get them out of my new camera and onto the computer. Finn is surfing in Sligo, so no help at all.

Full Moon

Two new women joined us at the bonfire last night. Our circle grows bigger and stronger. We drummed and journeyed and danced and chatted. As I drove back home over the mountains, with the great moon overhead, chased by the mist brewing in the fields and streaming over the road, I reflected on my life. May was a month of loss for me and I was glad to bid it farewell in a sacred way. Now I turn my face to June, to the summer and the sunshine. There's work to be done, but also fun to be had.