Hebredean Spring
Posted: Wednesday, 08 June 2005 |
Well, you should all know by now that I'm not really a story teller on IB. I prefer the visual media than the written word, and so here is a round up of Spring on Mull as seen through my camera lens. Hope you enjoy them and thankyou to everyone who was kind enough to comment on the last batch :-)
Bluebell Meadow near Craignure
Oyster Catcher's nest
Highland cow and calf, Torosay castle estate
Blebells against the sunset looking up the Sound of Mull
Woodsorrel in flower on an old stone wall
Celendine flowers Torosay gardens
Visit to Ulva
Posted: Friday, 10 June 2005 |
Although I've been living on Mull for 2 years, I only got around to visiting the tiny Island of Ulva a few weeks ago. I had seen the advertisment saying 'a world apart' , but I diden't quite expect to feel just that!
Ulva is an enchanting island with quite it's own atmosphere and energy....even though you can almost throw a stone from the shore of Mull to the shore of Ulva.
It's woodlands are beautifull and crammed with life, and the views from the higher paths are breathtaking.Everyone we met were extreamly friendly and laid back.....and the Boathouse Resturant had the biggest and best prawn rolls I have ever tasted! (fresh prawns pulled in and cooked only a few hours earlier).
I have now caught the Ulva 'bug' and intend to return many times with my camera through the changing of the seasons. If there are any other recent newcommers to Mull,holidayers about to visit Mull, or seasonal staff working the summer on Mull.....I highly recomend a visit to Ulva.
I believe there is a guided walk there on June 22nd as part of the Mull and Iona tree festival which is running now untill the end of July, perhapse that would be an ideal oppotunity if you want to see the Island.
Here is a few pics from my trip to Ulva :
Ulva Ferry heading towards The Boathouse
Ulva local,Barry, working on his boat:
Ulva woodland around the dam
Looking towards Mull from Ulva
Ulva is an enchanting island with quite it's own atmosphere and energy....even though you can almost throw a stone from the shore of Mull to the shore of Ulva.
It's woodlands are beautifull and crammed with life, and the views from the higher paths are breathtaking.Everyone we met were extreamly friendly and laid back.....and the Boathouse Resturant had the biggest and best prawn rolls I have ever tasted! (fresh prawns pulled in and cooked only a few hours earlier).
I have now caught the Ulva 'bug' and intend to return many times with my camera through the changing of the seasons. If there are any other recent newcommers to Mull,holidayers about to visit Mull, or seasonal staff working the summer on Mull.....I highly recomend a visit to Ulva.
I believe there is a guided walk there on June 22nd as part of the Mull and Iona tree festival which is running now untill the end of July, perhapse that would be an ideal oppotunity if you want to see the Island.
Here is a few pics from my trip to Ulva :
Ulva Ferry heading towards The Boathouse
Ulva local,Barry, working on his boat:
Ulva woodland around the dam
Looking towards Mull from Ulva
New site,new problems?
Posted: Saturday, 18 June 2005 |
Midsummer Night's Dreaming
Posted: Saturday, 18 June 2005 |
" May passed into June and Midsummer. The weather was glorious, long spells of sunshine with soft overnight rain, perfect for the growing.The land produced in abundance. The air was sweet with the smell of freshly mown hay, orange blossoms,carnations, and roses. There were roses everywhere.....
......For hours he would roam with Bronwen and the dog, dawn to dusk over the moors and the mountains, both of them careless as children. He feasted on fruits and salads,beans and peas and new potatoes. Herbs with their delicate scents were collected and set to dry and the cottage kitchen was filled with the smell of thyme and rosemary and fermenting wine. The apple tree's held the promise of cider, and down in the green woods the cherry was growing wild...."
from 'The Earth Witch' by Louise Lawrence.
Summer Solstice ( Litha)
The dawn of Tuesday morning will be Summer Solstice ,The celtic festival of Litha. Here in the last weeks of June we reach the height of the summer flowering. The sun is at it's highest point in the sky, giving us the longest day and the shortest night. The Summer Solstice is the great turning point of the solar year. The Earth around us is at the peak of it's outward flowering.....flowers adorn the meadows and hedgerows.....roses, buttercups, elderflowers, campion and vetch. The bees are laden with pollen amongst the clover, the hay grows tall and the light nights are scented with nettles and herbs.
The Goddess ( i.e Mother Earth) is the Queen of summer and the God ( i.e The Sun) is at the height of his strength and virility. Akin to a man and woman at the peak of their physical love and expression. The solstice energy represents our mid to late twenties in our own 'seasonal cycle of life'.....strong, virile, beautifull and expressive.
This is a time to relax and enjoy the summer....the rampant, chaotic energy of Spring and Beltane (May 1st) have passed and now there is a more balanced energy in nature.....things pause and begin to slow down. This is a time to sit in the meadow or on the mountainside and let the lazyness of summer envelope you. Enjoy. Life should be easier now than at anyother time of the year.
Midsummer was traditionally the time when our ancestors believed elementals and fairy folk would frolic and play tricks on mortals. The twilight nights are said to be full of magic and mayhem as all nature dances to Pan's pipes. The legends of fairy rings and fairy lights probably originate from glow worms, which were common in summer. Their neon greenish-yellow glow being easily seen on the light summer evenings.
Witches and wise men/women too, were very active during the summer nights, being light enough to gather herbs and other natural materials unseen, warm enough to meet outside and even to dance and perform rituals 'sky-clad' (naked). With all this activity, it is easy to see how Midsummer has earned it's reputaion for magic and mischief !
The festival of Midsummer is bittersweet. The wheel of the year must keep turning....
.....From this day forward the sun ( the God) begins to loose his strength and his power now goes into the grain, as the sun ripens what Mother Earth ( the Goddess) is producing. The Goddess, too, will start to transform....her outer beauty will start to fade as the flowers die back to fruit or seed. She will begin to move from 'Maiden' to 'Mother' and give birth to the Harvest ahead. From today (summer solstice) the year turns back toward the waning half of the cycle....days will get shorter and the nights longer as we slowly spiral back towards winter.
This is the way our ancestors saw the cycle of the seasons and based their celebrations and beliefs on, when we lived closer to the Earth and in tune with her cycle of birth and death.
The next major point and celebration of the year will be Lammas/Lughnasadh in early August....the beginning of the harvest.
To celebrate Midsummer you could decorate your table and home with fresh summer flowers: Roses, Elderblossom, daisies and ferns.....night scented stock, sweet peas, Jasmin and gipsofala.
Open your windows and let the air circulate and the birdsong fill your home.
A good time to have a gathering or party, with the light evenings and fresh summer salads (midges permitting!!). Light the garden with lanterns and fairy lights, leave a symbolic offering for the 'fair-folk' and burn sage grass to cleanse and purify. Have a fire with singing and home made wine!
It is traditional to stay up all night and greet the dawn of the longest day. Feel the freshness of the dawn and go to a high place where you can see the suns rays come over the horizon. Be with friends and loved ones and give thanks for their part in your life.
Photographs :
'The Secret Garden' taken in Torosay castle Gardens
'The White Hart' taken in Torosay gardens
'A glimpse of Pan' Wild mountain goat, Morven
'Downpour in the garden of memories' taken on Torosay Estate farm
Sunrise over The sound of Mull taken from Duart Bay
......For hours he would roam with Bronwen and the dog, dawn to dusk over the moors and the mountains, both of them careless as children. He feasted on fruits and salads,beans and peas and new potatoes. Herbs with their delicate scents were collected and set to dry and the cottage kitchen was filled with the smell of thyme and rosemary and fermenting wine. The apple tree's held the promise of cider, and down in the green woods the cherry was growing wild...."
from 'The Earth Witch' by Louise Lawrence.
Summer Solstice ( Litha)
The dawn of Tuesday morning will be Summer Solstice ,The celtic festival of Litha. Here in the last weeks of June we reach the height of the summer flowering. The sun is at it's highest point in the sky, giving us the longest day and the shortest night. The Summer Solstice is the great turning point of the solar year. The Earth around us is at the peak of it's outward flowering.....flowers adorn the meadows and hedgerows.....roses, buttercups, elderflowers, campion and vetch. The bees are laden with pollen amongst the clover, the hay grows tall and the light nights are scented with nettles and herbs.
The Goddess ( i.e Mother Earth) is the Queen of summer and the God ( i.e The Sun) is at the height of his strength and virility. Akin to a man and woman at the peak of their physical love and expression. The solstice energy represents our mid to late twenties in our own 'seasonal cycle of life'.....strong, virile, beautifull and expressive.
This is a time to relax and enjoy the summer....the rampant, chaotic energy of Spring and Beltane (May 1st) have passed and now there is a more balanced energy in nature.....things pause and begin to slow down. This is a time to sit in the meadow or on the mountainside and let the lazyness of summer envelope you. Enjoy. Life should be easier now than at anyother time of the year.
Midsummer was traditionally the time when our ancestors believed elementals and fairy folk would frolic and play tricks on mortals. The twilight nights are said to be full of magic and mayhem as all nature dances to Pan's pipes. The legends of fairy rings and fairy lights probably originate from glow worms, which were common in summer. Their neon greenish-yellow glow being easily seen on the light summer evenings.
Witches and wise men/women too, were very active during the summer nights, being light enough to gather herbs and other natural materials unseen, warm enough to meet outside and even to dance and perform rituals 'sky-clad' (naked). With all this activity, it is easy to see how Midsummer has earned it's reputaion for magic and mischief !
The festival of Midsummer is bittersweet. The wheel of the year must keep turning....
.....From this day forward the sun ( the God) begins to loose his strength and his power now goes into the grain, as the sun ripens what Mother Earth ( the Goddess) is producing. The Goddess, too, will start to transform....her outer beauty will start to fade as the flowers die back to fruit or seed. She will begin to move from 'Maiden' to 'Mother' and give birth to the Harvest ahead. From today (summer solstice) the year turns back toward the waning half of the cycle....days will get shorter and the nights longer as we slowly spiral back towards winter.
This is the way our ancestors saw the cycle of the seasons and based their celebrations and beliefs on, when we lived closer to the Earth and in tune with her cycle of birth and death.
The next major point and celebration of the year will be Lammas/Lughnasadh in early August....the beginning of the harvest.
To celebrate Midsummer you could decorate your table and home with fresh summer flowers: Roses, Elderblossom, daisies and ferns.....night scented stock, sweet peas, Jasmin and gipsofala.
Open your windows and let the air circulate and the birdsong fill your home.
A good time to have a gathering or party, with the light evenings and fresh summer salads (midges permitting!!). Light the garden with lanterns and fairy lights, leave a symbolic offering for the 'fair-folk' and burn sage grass to cleanse and purify. Have a fire with singing and home made wine!
It is traditional to stay up all night and greet the dawn of the longest day. Feel the freshness of the dawn and go to a high place where you can see the suns rays come over the horizon. Be with friends and loved ones and give thanks for their part in your life.
Photographs :
'The Secret Garden' taken in Torosay castle Gardens
'The White Hart' taken in Torosay gardens
'A glimpse of Pan' Wild mountain goat, Morven
'Downpour in the garden of memories' taken on Torosay Estate farm
Sunrise over The sound of Mull taken from Duart Bay
My weblog is mostly about a personal vision of Mull through my camera lens.
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