Sappho: Excerpts from Hymn to Aphrodite

Part I Chapter I

Shimmering throned immortal Aphrodite,

Daughter of Zeus, Enchantress, I implore thee,

Spare me, O queen, this agony and anguish,

Crush not my spirit.

Whenever before thou has hearkened to me,

To my voice calling to thee in the distance,

And heeding, thou hast come,

Leaving thy father's Golden dominions,

Come then, I pray, grant me surcease from sorrow,

Drive away care, I beseech thee, O Goddess,

Fulfil for me what I yearn to accomplish,

Be thou my ally.

Part I Chapter II

Peer of the gods, the happiest man I seem,

Sitting before thee, rapt at thy sight,

Hearing thy soft laughter and they voice most gentle,

Speaking so sweetly.

Then in my bosom my heart wildly flutters,

And when on thee I gaze never so little,

Bereft am I of all power of utterance,

My tongue is useless.

There rushes at once through my flesh tingling fire,

My eyes are deprived of all power of vision,

My ears hear nothing by sounds of winds roaring,

And all is blackness.

Down courses in streams the sweat of emotion,

A dread trembling o'erwhelms me,

Paler than I, than dried grass in autumn

And in my madness, dead I seem almost.

Part I Chapter III

A troop of horse, the serried ranks of marchers,

A noble fleet.

Some think these of all on earth, most beautiful.

For me, naught else regarding is my beloved.

To understand this is for all most simple,

For thus gazing much on mortal perfection,

And knowing already what life could give her,

Him chose fair Helen,

So must we learn, in a world made as this one,

Man can never attain his greatest desire,

But must pray; for what good fortune Fate holdeth,

Never unmindful.

NO SEX PLEASE WE’RE BRITISH 2014

The Locko Amateur Dramatic Society
30^th,31^st October and 1^st November 2014

Spondon Village Hall Derbyshire

Most people who now follow my BLOG officially or unofficially, will naturally be a little puzzled as to why I am reviewing this play. The majority of my writing is of a Pagan, folkloric and historical theme; unlike my previous reviews, this play falls into none of those categories. It is perfectly understandable and reasonable to wonder at such a phenomenon. However, I had two friends acting in this play and it was a damn good night out, so I am going to review it anyway.

The Locko Amateur Dramatic Society are a well known Am-Dram group in the Derbyshire area, they have a long history and a reputation as being one of the better groups in existence. The group is well respected for their professionalism and quality performances.

‘No sex please we’re British’ is a well-known British farce that was first performed in London in 1971, it represents something of a transition in British theatre, standing at a point between the liberal 1960’s and the glamour of the perhaps too liberal 1970’s. The play is almost a throw-back to the period of the Brian Rix farces but stands on its own merits, as a play of considerable humour and social observation.

Although never popular with the critics, the play remains well loved by theatre audiences, is always a success when revived and has in its time, seen big names such as Ronnie Corbett and David Jason appear. LADS therefore had picked a near predictable winner if performed well but equally, had a lot a live up to.

The plot revolves around a newlywed couple Peter and Frances Hunter, a bank manager and his homemaking wife played by Chris Getty and the charming Jenni Wildman. The couple wishing to make a little extra on the side, decide to venture into the sale of what they think are harmless VHS films, mail order from home. What they actually receive from the wholesale distributor are foreign films of a pornographic nature and a selection of very interesting postcards. The play therefore charts their varied attempts to dispose of said items, without the superiors of the bank or the mother of the wife becoming aware of the difficulties. Into this tangled web is drawn the Chief Cashier of the bank, Brian Runnicles. Played with adoring panache by Ryan Preston Potter.

The main obstacles in the path of Peter and Frances being that Frances mother Eleanor (played by Vicky Colclouh) is coming to stay and that Peter’s boss, the area manager Mr Bromhead (played by John Taylor) is rather sweet on her. This means that despite the best attempts of the Hunters to dispose of said items quietly and without fuss, Eleanor is often in the way and Mr Bromhead is constantly finding excuses to just drop by.

Increasing Brian Runnicles is drawn into the farce, making many varied and occasionally incompetent attempts to dispose of the VHS tapes and postcards. In this Ryan Preston Potter simply shone as a star performance in a part first played by Michael Crawford. Indeed the brilliant characterisation of Runnicles by Ryan Preston Potter was of such luminance, that the hall would light up when he walked on stage.

After various attempts to contact the distributor the final and successful one results in a major misunderstanding. Two young ladies arrive to placate the Hunters, who are believed by them to be unsatisfied customers. These two young ladies represent a rather novel approach to dealing with complaints and were played by Janine Getty and Callum Jermaks-Salter. The former simply oozing sex appeal on a stick, in the shortest nurse tunic I have ever seen, while the latter hammed up his part in a truly delightful manner. Together they gave the audience a wonderful comparison of two very differing comedic styles.

During the course of the proceedings, two more characters are added to the increasingly complicated plot, a Bank Inspector and a Police Inspector. Eventually the plot like the white lies told by all concerned, unravels to reveal both truth and deceit. Leaving the audience delighted by the charm, the humour and risktaking of all concerned.

Locko Amateur Dramatic Society (the LADs)

http://www.theladsdrama.co.uk/

The Vampire by Rudyard Kipling (1897)

A FOOL there was and he made his prayer

(Even as you and I!)

To a rag and a bone and a hank of hair         

(We called her the woman who did not care)

But the fool he called her his lady fair

(Even as you and I!)

Oh, the years we waste and the tears we waste

And the work of our head and hand

Belong to the woman who did not know

(And now we know that she never could know)

And did not understand!

A fool there was and his goods he spent

(Even as you and I!)

Honour and faith and a sure intent

(And it wasn’t the least what the lady meant)

But a fool must follow his natural bent

(Even as you and I!)

Oh, the toil we lost and the spoil we lost

And the excellent things we planned

Belong to the woman who didn’t know why

(And now we know that she never knew why)

And did not understand!

The fool was stripped to his foolish hide

(Even as you and I!)

Which she might have seen when she threw him aside

(But it isn’t on record the lady tried)

So some of him lived but the most of him died

(Even as you and I!)

“And it isn’t the shame and it isn’t the blame

That stings like a white hot brand

It’s coming to know that she never knew why

(Seeing, at last, she could never know why)

And never could understand!”

THE WOODS ARE DARK AND TERRIBLE

Picture copyright 2015

"The woods are dark and terrible,

And must be entered by crossing a stream.

There the coward withers, the faint-heart retreats.

For it is there that the Childe Rowland must blow the snail horn,

And face the enemy whom no man can ever unhorse."

An excerpt from a letter by Robert Cochrane to Bill Gray, the former alluding to the poetry of Robert Browning.

Winter Solstice 2014: a report by Penny Jackson of the HTW Inner Court

According to English Heritage, the winter solstice sunrise of 2014 was on 22 December. However, according to the Met Office, this would be thick with cloud. So I had a better idea - see the sunset on the 20th instead, which contained a possible window of daylight.

The exact purpose of Stonehenge is not known, but celebrating the winter solstice sunrise isn't actually on the list. There is no known alignment associated with it, it just seems to be a less crowded version of the midsummer sunrise. The midsummer sunrise does have archaeological logic, the stones are lined up for it. However, that alignment corresponds with the midwinter sunset directly opposite. Not the sunrise. So why is it celebrated today and not the sunset? I don't know. Probably because it suits English Heritage's opening times better?

Last year, I decided to explore the Stonehenge Avenue about a week after the solstice since it was one of the few days of the year I had free. We happened to arrive just before sunset, and sadly I had not brought a camera. What I saw made me desperate to return with a camera the next year, as it appeared to reveal an alignment not previously known. As the setting sun passed the summer sunrise/winter sunset axis, it projected a long shadow of the stones directly down the avenue. You may not be familiar with the avenue, which is a natural feature which happens to be aligned with the midwinter sunrise/midwinter sunset, and is probably why the location was considered sacred to one of those times of year (maybe both) and inspired Stonehenge to be built there. The part of it visible today is the section nearest Stonehenge, and it is a series of ridges running down the hill. The long shadows in parallel with those ditches was an amazing sight, and far more visible to a large number of people than a small hole only visible from one place and easily blocked by spectators. So I went back a day before the solstice itself to try to get some pictures.

Unlike the main stones, the avenue is free entry. I decided to respect nature (and the likely lack of parking) and get the bus to Amesbury. From there you walk along Stonehenge Road, cross the A303, and enter the field containing the Avenue, which gets you not a lot further from Stonehenge than the paying customers! It is about a 40 minute walk though. I was rather worried on the approach as it had turned cloudy, but noticed the horizon itself seemed to be clear so we probably would get a good view of the sunset. The field contained some of the best fairy rings I've ever seen.

The good news was the sky was clear enough on the horizon to see the sun setting, and we have some beautiful photos. The bad news is that it wasn't powerful enough to cast the shadows I saw the previous year. It's possible that this was due to thin cloud still being in front of the sun and on a completely clear sky it would work, but it may be that the reason for the spectacular shadows last year was that being a week or so off meant the sun was higher when it passed the stones and was therefore powerful enough to cast the shadows, but it isn't at the solstice itself.

A few others turned up to watch, but not many. I think there were about 5 on the avenue side of the fence? It seems a pity that what is probably such a spectacular cathedral to the winter solstice had so few people turn up to see the last actually visible sunset of the waning year. The paying customer side had a fair few but not an unusually high looking number for a day out at Stonehenge, fewer than an average day in summer. I was glad to see most of them looked like they were appreciating the sunset, all lined up by the heelstone. Someone had even brought a camera drone, not sure which side of the fence. This is something missing in most of the ceremonies I see at Stonehenge and Avebury - they ignore the sun. We go supposedly to celebrate it, but then at the moment the sun is supposed to rise the attention is on them not the sun. They don't even notice or acknowledge when it actually breaks over the horizon (or to be more realistic in modern Britain, the cloud). This is why I didn't feel much need to go to the ceremony that morning, I'd already seen the sun.

I think Stonehenge gets an unjustified bad press as big and commercialised among pagans. I love the place because there is so much to it which isn't well known or attended, there is plenty about it you can make special to you. The fire festivals aren't celebrated at all for example, if you attend then, it will probably just be you. How is that overly commercialised?

Getting into the main circle is at the mercy of English Heritage but the area is huge complex of monuments not under their control, and you can get very close for free if you know where the paths are. The Avenue is free access and until recently very little was known about it. And despite probably being the main purpose, very few people turn up to the winter solstice sunset. If you like a huge party where everyone is welcome it can be that, but if you like quiet, mysterious and intimate it can be that. In fact I think the surrounding barrows and avenue achieve that far better than Avebury except at certain times a couple of days of the year.

The photo above made up for the disappointing lack of shadows down the avenue. It shows the sun setting through the stones, and a ray of light almost perfectly lining up with the axis marked by English Heritage to show it. Although to be fair it was hardly a disappointing experience, I am one of the few people who have been able to see Stonehenge as it may have been intended, seeing the sun align with the heelstone and the avenue at the midwinter sunset. Not because I arranged special access with contacts in useful places or spent a lot of money, I just did some basic homework, checked the weather forecast, got the bus and went for a walk. Isn't that what paganism is supposed to be about?

Text copyright Penny Jackson, photographic copyright David Willingham.

Daily Affirmation

Light incense or a candle and stand facing either north or the rising sun. Raise your hands in salute and say: "I am protected, from all harm and injury, be it physical, mental or spiritual. I stand within circles of light that nothing save love may cross. (Oh Great Gods; my Lord and my Lady, send down thy powers, to guard, guide, inspire and uplift me and lead me in thy ways, now and forever.")

Place your arms out in front of you slightly with the palms downward and say: "I call upon the land beneath my feet." Turning  deosil in the same position while saying: "The sea that surrounds me." On returning to the starting position turn your palms upwards, raise your arms slightly and say: "And the sky that is above me, to bless and protect me, this day."

Text and photography copyright the Chattering Magpie. Section in brackets optional.

UNTITLED POEM

"Blackbirds sing and hawks, they dance.

Foxes play, while old brock sleeps.

And in the cave, the wild man sits,

And looks deep, into the spiral pit."

Text copyright 1998.

Picture copyright 2010.

.

THE GREEN KNIGHT

"Make we our covenant, ere we go further. First, I ask thee, knight, thy name. Tell me truly, that I may know thee."

"By the help of heaven I was true to my covenant, true to my king, and true to my host; but in this I faulted, that I was not true to myself."

"This is the bond of my blame that I bear in my neck, this is the harm and the loss I have suffered, the Cowardice and the Covetousness in which I was caught, the token of the covenant in which I was taken."

"My sword shall be bathed in heaven!"

Paraphrased quotations taken from “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” a play by the Reverend James Yeames

http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/arthur/art204.htm

All photography copyright D.B. Griffith the Chattering Magpie 2011 to 2014.