clarity sounding the third note of our Winter
clear vision of our quest to serve
I have used the mythology that tells of the Heather being an invitation to the "all seeing", a call to vision quest.
Bards have shared stories of Ur the Heather inspiring the enduring search to find the real recipe for the "water of life" to complete this quest,
They tell us that the secret is simple to find, and it is revealed through a willingness to share and encourage peace and unity under any conditions.
to read my Ur the Heather story poem, please click here to indulge ...
my Ur the Heather story poem explained ...
I open the first verse of my story poem with some words, rather than lines, from Robert Burns to give the "feel" of what is to come.
With Pine I talked of entry into this quarter of Divine Service, and with Gorse the detoxing of the soul to become clear. Here the theme should be to use this clarity of vision to serve our divine quest.
Well the original story poem I wrote for this seemed too much from the pulpit, and for some reason my mind wandered to daydream visions I had on Iona and isle of Mull in the Hebrides a long time ago.
I was, indeed, almost born onto moorland turf, but on Mull where turf is abundant it reminded me of this too.
I would roll in this and play in this, as I would also play and tumble in the woodland valleys too, but this is not a woodland story poem so I omit the woodland reference, this time. I decided this is where I want my life to be.
Through spring and summer I quickly reveal the moorland fires, the smoke that misted the hills, and a few words of teasing there to land a clue about where this story is going.
Yes, I move on to the picking of flowers at the Heather blooming season maybe for tea, maybe for extractions, as there are many medecines that can be made for the upcoming winter.
But what about the heather beer that is told of in many stories?
It seems like the keepers of those recipes are now buried with recipes not passed on.
For a moment, I also feel I should not be of these moorlands any more, moorlands that were once forests but with human abuse became these moors, acid moors where the heather can grow well, but at what cost.
Just then I was reminded of a story on Iona where it is said Gael first met Pict, people of the fields met people of the woods, despite Iona having few trees, though there is legend of there once being many Yew trees there.
And here we have a we tale of Gael and Pict chieftains sharing warm heather ale where the steam touched the icy rocks and formed an elexir that dripped back into their mugs.
Through this new merriment the believed uisge beatha, the water of life, had blessed them to unite together to serve a new wider nation.
They invited everyone they could reach to join their quest to serve, and share their belief in the "water of life", which, of course, can be interpreted in a couple of completely different ways.
to read about to grow and care for your own Heather, please click here
