Tag: Ireland

Molly Malone

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I love Irish music.

Even when it’s sad, which it often is, there is something lovely and haunting about it.

Anyway, when I was little, we still used tape players.

Oh yes, those ancient things, tapes.  Not CDs (which are fast becoming antiques), not iPods, cassette tapes.

I lived in San Diego, so my parents did a lot of driving with me in the car, and I listened to books and music on tape.

My mom used to play these “We Sing” tapes.

Which were, in their essence, recordings of overly enthusiastic kids singing loud classic children’s songs.  I used to sing along, but there were only three songs I really liked.

My favorite song was about a sweet Irish fishmonger who died.  I know.  Sad right?

I never knew the song title, and the tape got lost so I soon forgot about it.

But yesterday, after nearly 13 years, I heard that sad, Irish song again.

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The Wind That Shakes the Barley

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“I sat within a valley green

I sat with me my true love

My sad heart strove to choose between

The old love and the new love

The old for her, the new that made

Me think on Ireland dearly

While soft the wind blew down the glade

And shook the golden barley 

‘Twas hard the woeful words to frame

To break the ties that bound us

But harder still to bear the weight

Of foreign chains around us

And so I said, “The mountain glen

I’ll seek at morning early,

And join the brave United Men

While soft winds shake the barley.”

While sad I kissed away her tears

My fond arms ‘round her flinging

The foeman’s shot burst on our ears

From out the wildwood ringing

A bullet pierced my true love’s side

In life’s young spring so early

And on my breast in blood she died

While soft winds shook the barley

I bore her to some mountain stream

And many the summer’s blossom

I placed with branches soft and green

About her gore-stained bosom

I wept and kissed her clay-cold corpse

Then rushed o’er vale and valley

My vengeance on the foe to wreak

While soft wind shook the barley

But blood for blood without remorse

I’ve taken at Oulart Hollow

And laid my true love’s clay-cold corpse

Where I full soon may follow

As ‘round her grave I wander drear

Noon, night and morning early

With breaking heart when e’er I hear

The wind that shakes the barley“

–Robert Dwyer Joyce, “The Wind That Shakes the Barley.”

This poem was written about the 1798 Irish Rebellion, a conflict opposing British rule in Ireland.

It is told from the perspective of a young Irish rebel, torn between his lover and his desire to fight for his country.Read More »

Language of Flowers

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Long ago, in a land far far away…Nah.  Jk.

It wasn’t that long ago, or that far away.

During the Victorian-era in Britain (1837-1901) lovers spoke the Language of Flowers.

Ironically enough… I learned about the Language of Flowers from a Japanese amime show called Sailor Moon.

Yeah…

Anyway, the Language of Flowers was used to send coded messages using, wait for it… flowers.

Different blossoms in various arrangements carried special meanings.

For example:

Plumeria: Perfection, Springtime, New Beginnings
Orchid: Refined Beauty

Dahlia: Elegance, Dignity
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Claddagh Rings

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Claddagh rings originated in Ireland during the reign of William and Mary in the 17th Century.  The first ring was created in the small fishing village of Claddagh.  “Claddagh” comes from the Irish term an Cladach, meaning “flat stony shore.”

Made up of three parts, the components of the ring stand for the necessities of a relationship.

The heart represents love.

The hands symbolize friendship.

And the crown means loyalty.

They can be given in love or in friendship.  Or you can just buy one because they’re pretty.

Claddagh rings can be worn four ways.

If worn on the right ring finger with the heart facing out toward the fingertip, it means the person is not romantically involved; hence the “open” heart

If worn on the right ring finger with the heart facing in toward the wrist, it means the person is in a relationship and their heart is “closed.”

They can also serve as wedding/engagement rings.

If worn on the left ring finger with the heart facing out, it means the person is engaged.

If worn on the left ring finger with the heart facing in, it means they are married.

However, this is all assuming the person knows how to wear a Claddagh ring and is aware of its meaning and symbolic significance.

Claddagh rings are often embellished with Celtic trinity knots (as pictured above).

The information below is courtesy of  What’sYourSign.com

The trinity knot or triquetra (Latin for “three cornered”) can have a number of meanings.

The corners can represent:

Past, Present, Future.

Mind, Body, Spirit.

Thought, Feeling, Emotion.

Power, Intellect, Love.

Creation, Preservation, Destruction.

Other World, Mortal World, Celestial World.

Anyway, I think they’re awesome.  So if you get a chance, check them out.