A Bronze Award.

It is really good to be asked to do something which you enjoy and watch a project go forward to become a success. I was asked by Dr. Jenny Butler, a Folklorist at UCC, if I and my druid grove would be interested in taking part in a documentary film that Tile Films of Dublin were proposing to make. 

I sounded out the members of the Owl Grove for their views and a majority decision was made so we contacted the film company. 

About a month before the filming was to start two members were unable to take part. As I had set the number at twelve participants I approached an old friend of mine from years back who was living down in Co. Waterford, as I knew she was a druid. Fortunately for me she agreed to take part and bring along one of her sons who is a fluent Irish scholar. The rest is history.

Today, I am delighted to be able to congratulate the executives and staff of 

Tile Films who were awarded a Bronze World Medal for their 45 minute documentary film Sacred Sites: Ireland.

Not only is it a great achievement for Tile Films, based in Dublin, it is also great for Ireland.

****

The Owl Grove members who took part were:

Áine-Maire, Claire, Colin, Flynn, Fred, Jane, Majella, Mel, Patsy, Rita, Siobhán and Vinnie.

To view film Sacred Sites : Ireland

http://www.newyorkfestivals.com/winners/2015/pieces.php?iid=478629&pid=1

You can read my posts about the filming HERE and HERE

Good News from Derry

Manannán Mac Lír

A Celtic sea god statue that was stolen from a County Derry mountainside is set to be replaced after councillors voted in support of its reinstatement. This is very welcome news.

The six-foot Manannán Mac Lir sculpture disappeared from Binevenagh Mountain, near Limavady, last month.

It was created by John Sutton, who worked on the Game of Thrones TV show.

At a meeting on Tuesday night, Limavady Borough Council voted to replace the stolen artwork with a sculpture "as similar to the original as possible".

'Worldwide response'
Its chief executive, Liam Flanigan, told elected members that he had received letters from across the world in the wake of the sculpture's theft.

"We've had offers of support from the States, Canada and New Zealand. The response has been worldwide, with many people offering to contribute to the replacement of the sculpture."

The council is set to approach the original artist to request financial quotes for the replacement and will seek estimated costs for reinforcing the new artwork, to ensure it is more difficult to remove from its mountainside perch in future.

Councillors also agreed to set up a fund to allow members of the public to make donations towards the cost of the reinstatement.

'Pagan'
Manannán Mac Lir is a sea god from Irish & Manx mythology and the statue had become a popular tourist attraction in the area.

Its disappearance remains a mystery, but police have said they are investigating a "religious aspect" to the theft.

Those who cut down the statue left a small wooden cross in its place, bearing the words 'You shall have no other gods before me'.

Mr Sutton has said he believes it would have taken a number of men with angle grinders several hours to remove the heavy, man-size figure from its base.

At Tuesday night's council meeting, Sinn Féin's Rory Donaghy proposed that the replacement be based as closely as possible on the original £10,000 sculpture.

Remaining plinth

Welcoming First Day of Spring

In County Kerry there is a tradition that dates back thousands of years, for in Ireland

the 1st of February is recognised as the first day of Spring, even though the weather is

cold and the temperatures are very low.

Then there is the tradition of making the Brigid's crosses, where the man of the house cuts 

the reeds in late January, stores them in a cool place and then presents to the women to 

on the day to make the crosses.

© Jane Brideson

A cold back aching job stood in a water laden pasture cutting reeds.

© Séan Gilmartin

 Women gather to sit in a warm room to make the crosses.

© Séan Gilmartin

There are many different designs, some are four armed, others three armed

and this one is the plaited cross of Donegal.

A DINGLE EXPERIENCE

A gathering of the European Rainbow Family took place at Ballyhupahaun in the Slieve Bloom mountains. Approximately two thousand people from all around the world attended and although the core group was possibly only half that number, during their three week stay their was a continuos stream of people arriving and leaving on a daily basis.

I first heard of the event when I was on my annual visit to my mother who was living in Glastonbury, Somerset in early July 1993. 
I was in the town when I bumped into an old friend who was waiting at a bus stop and just as her bus arrived she said “I’m going to Ireland soon to a Rainbow Camp” and before I could ask whereabouts, she was gone.


Early the next day I too was on my way back to Ireland via Pembroke in Wales, to catch the ferry to Rosslare followed by a two and half hour drive to my then bachelor home.  A few days later I was having a cup of tea and a chat with my turf supplier, when his wife told me about the Rainbow people who were camping up in the mountains. I waited for a couple of days before making a visit to the camp and the very first person I met was my friend from Glastonbury!

Photo © Senator John Whelan 1993

European Rainbow Family Gathering at Ballyhupahaun, Slieve Blooms 1993

Further information in regard to the Rainbow Gathering can be read at

http://www.wiredwithwhelan.com/?p=974

After that I was a frequent visitor and towards the end of the gathering she asked if she, her daughter and other friends could come and stay with me for a few days. I happily agreed and also offered to take them to Cork to catch the Swansea ferry if they supplied the petrol. 


So we eventually set off to take a slow meandering route to Cork, via counties Offaly, Galway, Clare, Limerick and Kerry. Our destination in Kerry was of course Dingle and a visit to see Fungi the dolphin. Once there I parked on the quay side and waited whilst they took the boat to see the popular marine mammal. 
Afterwards we drove around Dingle bay looking for a secluded spot to pitch two small tents. We found a small grassy promontory on the bank of a creek which seemed to be last resting place for old trawlers.

Dingle Bay and Harbour (see inset below)

A creek of Dingle bay.

We camped very close to the two smaller boats

Both maps: source Apple Maps

Myself and another man took one tent whilst the three women had the other with sufficient room between the two tents for a small cooking fire. Behind us was a rusting boundary fence belonging to the overgrown garden of a derelict cottage and front of us a wide creek. 

Sleep came easily for we had had a busy day. 
During the night I was awoken by a noise that could best be described as the sound of children playing in the school yard. It was coming from behind our tent and getting progressively closer. I finally heard an authoritative male voice say “Leave them alone! They are alright”.
I lay quietly in my sleeping bag wondering whether to awaken my companion but decided that it was pointless so started to drift back to sleep. Again I was disturbed by exactly the same noise of children playing and the male voice. Eventually I slept.

Next morning all five of us gathered by the fire where I began telling my companion what I had heard during the night.  At the same time Ms S started to relate to her companions exactly the same account. She too had heard the children playing and the male voice!

Later I looked in the over-grown garden to see if it had been disturbed at all. No grass had been flattened, no footprints were visible, there were no signs of a human presence having been there.
To this day I have no idea of the source of the nocturnal noises. 

Dingle Faeries perhaps ?

Has anyone an explanation or had a similar experience in Dingle or elsewhere ?

GOBLIN MARKET

Am pleased to be able to share this with you all.


Having sold-out in Brighton last year, a group of queer pagans are doing a mini-tour of Goblin Market,  starting in Bristol for one night - Saturday 12 July.
Later dates will be in Brighton (August) & London (September, hopefully)......and if all goes well, more venues later...Nottingham is one possibility.

They really need to fill the Bristol auditorium though I realize it's quite short notice.......so please spread the word to anyone one you know in the South-West & West of England or in Wales who might enjoy the show.

Tickets are now on sale online so please encourage people to buy them....if we do sell out (and I do hope so!) there will be few, if any, tickets at the door.

There are four links that will take you to the page:

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/741745

http://bpt.me/741745

http://goblin-market.brownpapertickets.com

http://goblin-market.bpt.me

For those of you who would like to read Christina Rossetti's poem please follow the link 

http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/16950/pg16950.html 

A Return to the Kingdom

Last weekend we took a trip down to Cahersiveen in County Kerry to stay for a few days with a friend and while she worked and worked, we took photos and holidayed.

Cahersiveen 

looking seawards from Mount Beentee

Cahersiveen looking inland

Behind the blue facade lies little France in Ireland. For here we breakfasted on delicious almond and raisin croissants served with such wonderful coffee; that I half believed that I was back in La France again!

On mentioning delicious food stuffs, we also visited an independent chocolatier trading as SKELLIGS. Mrs H said that it is the best chocolate she has ever tasted and I know that she is correct. So please visit http://www.skelligschocolate.com

A beach between Waterville & Cahersiveen

A shoreline seascape typical of this area.

We cannot ignore visiting ancient wells

St Finnian's Well

Back to Mount Beentee a well named

The Well of the Fair Women

or in As Gaeilge

Tobar na mBan Fionn

Here the heavenly scents are shared!

You might like to visit Mrs H's blog and read her words on the same subject,
because I'm not feeling very wordy today :)
http://theeverlivingones.blogspot.ie

Dr. Jenny Butler.

Our Honorary  E Granddaughter to whom we gave that accolade several years ago has recently achieved a dizzy status and can now be referred to as Doctor Jenny Butler Ph.d however, to us she will still be known as HEG, the E standing for 'educated' of course, though at other times it might also stand for evil :) ! We are immensely proud of Jenny and send her through this medium our congratulations on a study well done. 

I have watched the video many times and do declare that during the x amount of years knowing her, her youthfulness has rubbed off on me and today I look much younger than on the video.

INVITATION

Please visit

http://theeverlivingones.blogspot.ie

Small tour of Cork & Kerry

We took a few days off from the treadmill of life to go sight-seeing around the counties that lie to the West and South of us.

The Shannon ro-ro ferry that plies between Killimer in Co Clare and Tarbert in Co Kerry saving  many miles tedious driving.

Shrone Beg showing the Paps of Anu in the background and in the foreground a spring well that has been venerated continuously for thousands of years; today it is known as Mary's Well, prior to that it was named after three female saints whose names closely resemble ancient pagan deities.

Inch Beach is a 3 miles long by approx. 3/4 mile deep peninsula with sand dunes and provides a natural breakwater to Castlemaine harbour to the east.

The speed limit through the small village of Adrigole on a well dressed tarmac surfaced road is safely signed as 60 km/h (35 mph) So it came as a surprise to me to see that the speed limit on twisty, stony boreen (track) was signed as 80 km/h (50 mph) ! I wonder who in Cork County Council is responsible for this bit of mis-management and whether they were sober at the time of signing the appropriate order ?

We visited Eyeries a small picturesque town where every building is painted a different colour. Eyeries nestles on high ground between the Slieve Miskish and Caha Mountains. It was holding a Family Day in aid of the local school, here amongst the many stalls we found a friend of ours selling her Eco-wares.

I am drawn like a magnet to businesses that sell good food and wine. One such place is Val Manning's Emporium at Ballylickey, a few short miles west of Bantry. Here we managed to find a table for two and in warm sunshine we feasted on Lemon Polenta cake washed down with delicious coffee and enjoyed our talk with Val, who is a legendary conversationalist with a wealth of knowledge on many subjects.

Jane's Exhibition

It is with great pleasure that am able to share the following:

About the artist: Jane Brideson was born Jane McGill in Ghana, West Africa and 

adopted her Manx grandmother's name of Brideson 

(Mylevreeshy / Mac Ghiolla Brigide) when she began painting in the 1980's.

After growing up in Liverpool and on the Isle of Man, she moved to live in Ireland between the Slieve Bloom mountains and the River Barrow where she shares a cottage with her husband, Mel, their dog and several cats. 

Jane has an honours degree in graphic design and a diploma in client-centred art therapy. 

Whilst in London she worked as a freelance designer / illustrator for the Observer newspaper and Hodder & Stoughton Publishers. 

In 1997 she collaborated with Teresa Moorey to produce their book 

"The Wheel of the Year : myth & magic through the seasons". 

She loves Ireland and the Irish mythology, the power of images, books and music to transport us to other worlds and the occasional pint of Guinness.

In 2006 she was inspired by a dream to begin painting 

"The Ever-Living Ones" and along the way found help, support and knowledge.

Without the following people this exhibition would not have been possible:

Mel Llwyd, Fred Mathews, Michael Collins, Seán Gilmartin, Fiona Young,

 Áine-Máire Ní Mhurchú, Siobhán ní Ghabhann, Shirley Swan, 

Marie O'Dwyer, Seámus Ó Ceallaháin, Antoine O'Lochlainn, Carole Larkin, 

Trish Keating, Gearóid Ó Crualaoich, Eoghain Mac Connell, Flor Burke, Seánie Larkin, Carmel ní Dhuibheanaigh, Bill & Peggy Sinnott, 

James Crowley, Jenny Butler, Anthony Murphy, Colm Mac Con Iomaire, 

Fr. Seámus O'Duinn, the late Dáithí Ó hÓgain, Noel Reynolds, 

Suzanne Power, Æ, the contributors to "On Crow Road", Claire Tuffy at 

Brú na Bóinne, Joan & Des at Midland Framing, Mochua Print & Design, 

Joe & staff at  O'Sullivan Photography, The National Museum Dublin and 

the staff at Tullamore Library.