Braid the cattles' horns with daisies
now the winter's finally passed.
The pretty maidens all come lilting
one by one across the grass.
flowers in their hair, and singing,
dresses glimmering soft and sweet,
and they dance around the maypole,
tripping softly on light feet.
The Beltane fire is burning,
casting embers on the lawn.
Make your wish, set your intention
before the spring has come and gone.
Gather 'round the fire, my sisters.
Lift your pretty skirts up high.
One great leap, your curls a-flying,
as the lads all pine and sigh.
You're a mix of strong emotions,
half-demure, yet mostly wild.
Ride your wild-horse heart with caution,
half-woman, still mostly child.
Dance around the pretty maypole.
One by one, you claim your power.
From girl to woman you are changing,
like the springtime claims its hour.
from 2016, Beltane in the northern hemisphere, my Irish roots are stirring. Shared with Real Toads on the Tuesday Platform.
This is a good one!!! And I love the dog with crown.
ReplyDeleteOh - this carried me along so gently! I adore this and the effort you took to create such a beauty!
ReplyDeleteSuch a melodious song — how you have captured these images with such subtlety is just wonderful! :-)
ReplyDeleteOh gosh this is beautiful, Sherry!❤️ Happy Beltane!
ReplyDeleteI do not celebrate Beltane but I loved this gentle hearted tribute. The wolf with the wheat crown makes me smile hugely.
ReplyDeleteAw yeah! Beltane! It's one of the holiday my Jewish hubby recognizes and is happy to help me celebrate. Who says young maidens get to have all the fun? :D
ReplyDeleteReally like your Beltane song, Sherry. You capture it so well and I absolutely love that final photo. We did a much more sedate Maypole thing. Yours speaks to the wild enthusiasms of youth. I much prefer it.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth
https://soulsmusic.wordpress.com/2019/04/30/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-memory/
Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteOh, I love this.. I feel like making a flower crown and dancing.
ReplyDeleteI can feel the joy!
ReplyDeleteVery lyrical. Out here May 1st is Labour Day, recognizing workers across the country.
ReplyDeleteBeltane sounds so beautiful. I loved the picture you have painted with your words
ReplyDeleteNothing so inspirational as Beltane or Samhain, for me but today is Worker's Day..I get the day off.
ReplyDeleteI love this maypole dance with the animals. And feel deeply blessed. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI would love to see cattle with daisies on their horns, Sherry! And I’ve been intoning my wish under my breath most of the day.
ReplyDeleteWhat a joy... here it was Walpurgis night yesterday, and many fires were lit... and many choirs.
ReplyDeleteI want to memorize this one and dance as I chant that words. The tone is pure delight, and the words are Beltane-kissed!
ReplyDeletePretty Poem, Sherry. "Changing from girl to woman," please not to fast, and please keep some bit the little girl. "...wild-horse heart with caution, half-woman, still mostly child..." matches with the child part I kept in me. Mrs. Jim, a pioneer woman is a perfect match most times. :-)
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You've certainly captured the festive spirit of Beltane. I love the flow and imagery, and makes me yearn for such a gathering. Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteHappy Beltane! This poem is so lyrical, it should be sung in a meadow.
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