The Banshee's Gift

by Alice Guerin Crist

1876-1941, written in 1921

As we came down the old boreen,
Rose and I – Rose and I,
At vesper time on Sunday e’en,
We heard a banshee cry!

Beyond the churchyard dim and dark,

‘Neath whispering elms, and yew-trees stark,

Where our star shone-a corpse-like spark-
Against the wintry sky.

We heard and shuddered sick with dread,
Rose and I- Rose and I,
As the shrill keening rang o’erhead
Where cloud-wrack floated high.

Our two young hearts long, sorely tried,
By poverty and love denied
Still waiting for some favouring tide,
And now! Death come so nigh.

‘Which of us two is called away
You or I-You or I?”
I heard my patient poor love say,
With bitter plaintive sigh.

‘Neither, dear girl,” I bravely said,
‘To Mary Mother bow your head,
And cry for help to Her instead,
Nor heed the Banshee’s cry’.

We raised our hearts in fervent prayer,
Rose and I-Rose and I,
Nor knew our troubles ended there,
Our happiness came nigh.

For ‘twas the grim old farmer, he-
My only kin, rich, miserly,

Who, dying left his wealth to me-
For whom the banshee cried.

The pendant necklace on a 24" beaded strand, filled with Celtic imagery, can be purchased here.  Or contact Cornerstoregoddess. $75 includes S&H.

Banshee pendant created by Tanya Bond
Kirkby Lonsdale, churchyard 

Chillingham Yew Trees
Winter Sky

Winter Morning

by Ogden Nash



Winter is the king of showmen,
Turning tree stumps into snow men
 


And houses into birthday cakes
And spreading sugar over lakes.
 


Smooth and clean and frosty white,
The world looks good enough to bite.
 


That's the season to be young,
Catching snowflakes on your tongue.
 


Snow is snowy when it's snowing,
I'm sorry it's slushy when it's going.

Guaranteed not-to-melt snowpersons here.

Ballad of a Boneless Chicken

by Jack Prelutsky

I’m a basic boneless chicken,
Yes, I have no bones inside,
I’m without a trace of ribcage,
Yet I hold myself with pride,
Other hens appear offended by my total lack of bones,
They discuss me impolitely
In derogatory tones.



I am absolutely boneless,
I am boneless through and through,
I have neither neck nor thighbones,
And my back is boneless too,
And I haven’t got a wishbone,
Not a bone within my breast,
So I rarely care to travel
From the comfort of my nest.



I have feathers fine and fluffy,
I have lovely little wings,
But I lack the superstructure
To support these splendid thing.
Since a chicken finds it tricky
To parade on boneless legs,
I stick closely to the hen house,
Laying little scrambled eggs.



Boneless chicken right here.

This Little Piggie

This little piggie went to market.



This little piggie flew home.



This little piggie grew veggies.



This little piggie did roam



Down to the corner deli



Eyeing the sausage and brats

'

Til he spied Aunt Tillie

Hatching a piggie plot.



"Sausage," said Aunt Tilly

"Comes with mystery meats.

But my special sausage

Is filled with veggie treats."





Now Aunt Tillie's Deli's

Known for grains and fruits,



Burgers made with millet

And with bamboo shoots.


Piggies can be found here.

Pig in chef's hat can be found here.  (You never know when you'll need one.)

And go here for Mutts.  (We all need our daily dose of Mutts.)

An Irish Blessing

May there always be work for your hands to do.

May your purse always hold a coin or two.

May the sun always shine on your windowpane.

May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain.
 

May the hand of a friend always be near you.
 

May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

Bracelet here.  Blessings everywhere.

Spotted Owls on a (Nearly) Wordless Wednesday

Owls here.

Fred the Zombie

Fred the Zombie

Fred the Zombie is one of the lampwork un-dead.  He likes walks on the beach, eating brains, and dancing like no one's watching.  

Fred can be found here.

Spring Training... for Bunnies

In spring, all thoughts turn to spring training for the bunnies.  After a long hard winter, they're ready to start Bunny Boot Camp at a remote site hidden beneath blankets of flowers.

It is there that the bunnies decide which career options to pursue.  Their choices are many, and bunnies must choose carefully.  Many of celebrity rabbits, like Bugs or Thumper, require the bunnies to work an internship program where they are generally mistreated and overworked for little compensation, all for the lure of fame.

The literary rabbits keep to themselves, and foster only the finest rabbit minds.  Each mentors one of the new rabbits.  Peter Cottontail, for example, looks for a somewhat rebellious type.

The Velveteen Rabbit is always scouting for new bunnies filled with love.

The March Hare is, not surprisingly, always in a hurry and tends to make snap judgments, which has led to disaster on more than one occasion.

Rabbit of the Hundred Acre Woods is always too nervous to make a thoughtful decision, and accepts hordes of hares.

Then there are the bunnies better known for their physical attributes.  The Energizer Bunny commands a vast squadron of rabbits, and they can be seen from the crack of dawn, until late at night, doing cardio and weights.

There are assorted Trickster Bunny Mentors... everyone from Anasazi...

...to the Trix Rabbit.

They're on the lookout for a particular kind of rabbit.  It's not the breed, they explain.  It's how the harebrain works.

Then there are imaginary rabbits, like Harvey, who train with their imagination.  Their graduating classes lack a certain visibility.

There are, of course, many specialty rabbits needed.  Peter Cottontail is always in need of new recruits, and is thankful that rabbits breed like rabbits, because it takes a lot of hopping to deliver all those eggs.

Little Bunny Foo Foo used to recruit at spring training...

...until his fairy godmother turned him into a ghoul.

(They always said he was mad as a March hare.)

Magician's rabbits are considered a specialty, and they attend secret seminars.

And of course many train to be garden variety rabbits, which are known at training camp as garden-eating variety rabbits.

But by the time spring is sprung, they're ready to hop to it.

It's a busy season, and the coaches have no time to pull rabbits out of their hats (or to split hares).

On the final day, after culmination exercises, everyone makes quick like a bunny...

...to embark on new careers.

If you hop to it, you can catch them hare...er, here.