Mabh Savage
Words and the world passing by; how it sings to me; how I clamour back.
Lick the Sky
It’s Imbolc
And I want to
Lick the sky
Those fiery stripes
Must surely be
As sweet as sunrise ice.
The blackbird nods
Tail bouncing on the wall
Of a run down council house.
The Honda Prelude that
Cuts me up
Is a square assed snap chat
Of the past
And the wind turbine
Crazy in the cruel bite
Of winter’s last stand
Is a bright spark of
Future hope.
It’s Imbolc
And I want to
Grasp the earth
Bulbs tickling my cheek
With first new shoots
Reach out with great
Goddess hands
Surround the sky
And lick.
A Crow Comes to Visit
When I was little I rescued an injured crow, and as it was too damaged to return to the wild, the crow stayed with my family and usually lives with my mum and dad. Crowley the Crow is visiting me, however, because mum and dad are decorating and it will be too dusty for him.
This week I will be writing more about our relationships with animals and the animal kingdom, but for now I’d like to show you a little snippet of my inspiration for this. My cheeky, bratty and adorable companion, Crowley.
Brigid’s Fire Imbolc Issue- Out Now!
I’m so proud to contribute towards this fantastic magazine full of all things Pagan, magical and seasonal. In this issue I write about how Brigid has inspired me to sing. There’s also articles from Ali Isaac, Alan Crowe and many more. Click the picture above for more info. Enjoy!
Preserved lemons
My other half bought me a gorgeous tagine for Yule, and after having taken it out for a successful maiden voyage (mutton with olives and apricots) I’ve been inspired to explore North African cooking a little more. These preserved lemons are easy and satisfying to make (you literally cram them into a jar!) but they have to be left for 3 weeks before eating. So I shall report back on the flavour. I hope I have the patience not to crack into them early!
Recipe from daringgourmet.com
Druidry and diplomacy
The balance of truth and kindness…
The Romans gave us the tale of Druids going out onto battlefields and ending the fight. Far too many modern Druids, especially those arguing with each other in social media spaces, manifestly lack for diplomatic skills. Further, there doesn’t seem to be much inclination to foster them, either. Online debate is all too often about point scoring, hammering your opponent and showing off how clever you are. I’ve dabbled in at as well, although most of the time I try not to. I just can’t resist piling in when someone gets sanctimonious, smug and self important because usually such people spout a lot of nonsense. Still, it’s not something I’m proud of, but its important to flag that I’m a work in progress on this issue.
For Druidry to grow we need to be able to flag up what is bloody stupid, inside our own community and beyond it. We…
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Feeling Lifted
Two new additions to my busy autumn/winter table: Sex, Love and Rock and Roll by Tony Walsh aka Longfella, and Navigation by Canal Laureate, Jo Bell. What inspired these two new purchases? A trip to Otley Courthouse to see Lifted, an interactive poetry performance by these two accomplished and entertaining poets.
It’s a cold, misty mooned Saturday night. Otley is quiet and blank faced stone houses line suspiciously silent streets. But there is a warm buzz emanating from The Courthouse, and the monochrome night is rescued by warm lights and coloured flags; remnants from Divali flapping in the cold wind.
Friendly face surprises are the first bursts of happiness, followed by a cheeky glass of white and finding seats near the front. We’re a little disappointed how easy it is to find seats- we had expected to struggle to get tickets for this event after looking forward to it for a good three months. However the last explosive celebrations of Bonfire Night seem to have tempted most away; or possibly Doctor Who. Haven’t these people heard of iPlayer??
Still, the medium sized audience manages to fill the courtroom with clapping, laughter, sighs and even the clatter of heels on wood as Tony and Jo take us on an exploration of all the things, big and small, that make us happy. We even have homework! Jo reads out our handwritten offerings such as When and where were you happiest so far and Tell us something that makes you happy. I chose my happiest moment so far: coming home from the hospital with Nathan, him sleeping in the Moses basket, poor cats struggling to cope and perching, meerkat like, peering at the new invader while Matt Smith dominated the TV.
Jo and Tony take turns and sometimes duet on a diverse range of poems; some funny, some sad, but all touching on the moments that lift us; that make us grateful, joyous, or bring epiphany.
Tony’s quick fire, loud and cheeky delivery matches his skill with rhyme perfectly; not many poets can rhyme and keep rhyming for a long time in a long poem and not have it sound trite or contrived at some point. Tony not only manages this but almost makes you forget you are listening to a structured form; the poems almost become songs.
Jo’s delivery is heartfelt and ranges between gentle sincerity and naughty humour. Her phrasing is a delight and the imagery she uses evokes feelings and memories that can drag you back to a summer’s day, or a lazy morning’s (lack of) activities, or a passionate clinch.
There is talk of love and kingfishers, dancing and death, a manifesto for happiness and the truth about duck gang rape. Ranging between enthralling and hilarious, these poets work marvellously together and at the end of the night, I think we really are all thinking about the things that make us happy, and we have been thoroughly entertained. Highly recommended.
Catch this feel good show while you can:
The Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond, 13th November
Celtic Witchcraft Chapter 4
Click here to read the latest chapter, which includes gorgeous artwork by my sister Kirsten Savage. In this chapter we look at the magic of colours and how to apply this in your day to day life.
Mabh Savage 