MEADOW SWEET GROVE
  • Home
  • Shop
  • Blog-Recipes & Extras
  • Blog-Folklore & Magic
  • Payment, Shipping & Policies
  • Sold Archives & Reviews
  • About
  • Contact
  • Midnight at the Grove
  • ETSY Shop
  • Finding Service
  • Rhian's Renderings
Picture
    
~ Blog - Folklore & Magic ~
Picture

Moon Rabbits do double duty as Easter Bunnies!

4/14/2019

2 Comments

 
Picture
Moon Rabbits Oblong Dish, Made in Japan
Picture
Moon Rabbits Egg-shaped Dish, Origin Unknown

My interest in Asian folklore is relatively new and, as such limited, but I understand that these little fellows are moon rabbits, popular in Chinese, Japanese, Korean and other folklore. 

The oblong dish to the left is made in Japan and depicts moon rabbits with the full moon above them in the dark blue night sky.  They are surrounded by eggs.  I had forgotten the imagery on it when I stumbled across the little pastel-coloured dish to the right.  It mystified me a bit at first, because it is egg-shaped and the bunnies are busily cavorting among pretty pink eggs and a flower.  This led me at first to think it was an Easter dish - until I flipped it over and saw an Asian back stamp!  But of course, when you compare the two, there is simply no mistake - I believe the pink flower in this case serves as a pretty substitute for the moon.  

The white moon rabbit lives on the moon and stirs an elixir of immortality.  Sometimes, when you look at the full moon, you can see his image.  I'm not sure if the chocolate eggs I intend to place in these dishes will help in the quest for immortality ... but they certainly will satisfy the evening sweet tooth!

 Bibliography:  Wikipedia, Moon Rabbit, 2019                                  
                                                                                                                                                              Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2019
2 Comments

The Rest of the Traveller / Curious Adventure of Mr. Bond

10/25/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
I love Alfred Hitchcock!  One story he collected, "Curious Adventure of Mr. Bond" by Nugent Barker, portrays Mr. Bond, a lone traveller, who after a wearying journey up the slopes of a valley happens upon a vast tableland and an inn, far in the distance and on the edge of a forest.  He is delighted when he is heartily greeted by the landlord, a Mr. Crispin Sasserach and his wife Myrtle, who is preparing "a lovely broth to-night".

After a wonderfully warm and cozy evening of delicious broth and good company, Mr. Bond departs the next morning with Mr. Sasserach who drives him over land bordered by forest on the left and rowan trees leading down to the valley on the right.  Mr. Bond is duly deposited at the inn of Sasserach's brother (Martin), "The Headless Man", where he enjoys a meal of many succulent meat dishes and a game of chess with his host (with curious hand-carved chess pieces).  Mr. Bond does start to feel a little "obliged" and frustrated by their "over-hospitality" when it is insisted that he visit the third brother's inn, "The Traveller's Head".

Picture
He learns on this journey that the three brothers own the entire land above the valley, divided into three equal portions.  When prompted by Mr. Bond to discuss the names of the inns, which are seemingly quite common, but nonetheless "turned around"; the manservant, Stennet, who is driving the carriage, enlightens him thusly:  the name "The Traveller's Rest" is self-explanatory and so is made poetical by changing it to "The Rest of the Traveller" focusing on the "rest" to be found at the inn.  "The Headless Man" is simply grim for the sake of grimness and "The Traveller's Head" pays homage to the traveller himself, in the same manner that many inns are called "The King's Head".  By now, however, you must have had some suspicions as to the eventual fate of our poor Mr. Bond.

Picture"Mr. P.R. Barnes, licensed to sell Beers, Wines & Spirits"
I took these photos last month when we found ourselves, without benefit of a map, and on the dubious advice of modern GPS, lost and travelling down many of those narrow, winding roads so common in England.  We finally pulled up short in front of this inn while my husband consulted his own sources to get us back on the right track.  I sat in the car looking up at the sign above the doorway of this seemingly deserted (although correctly named!) inn and was relieved to read that a "Mr. P.R. Barnes" was the proprietor ... and not Mr. Crispin Sasserach himself!!

Cannibalism is common in folklore and fairytales.  As the hour of All Hallow's Eve approaches and leads us into the dark of winter, I humbly felt it might be an appropriate time to include one of my favourite tales of this delightfully taboo subject!  

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2018
0 Comments

The Apple Trees of Avalon

9/17/2018

1 Comment

 
Picture
Picture"Apple Tree in Avalon" (Glastonbury, England - 2018)

It isn't for me to say if the legendary Avalon existed literally or figuratively, but Avalon, or "the island of apples" was located for some at Glastonbury in Somerset, England.  Certainly there is magic in the sight of the serene countryside, gently grazing farm animals, stone walls and weathered wooden gates - not to mention the many apple trees growing amply and fruitfully in fields alongside the path to Glastonbury Tor.

Legend tells that the numerous wild apple trees of Avalon needed no cultivating to grow and gave fruit endlessly - contributing to an easy lifestyle for its happy inhabitants!  I have found that nature provides everything spontaneously for our own apple trees to flourish and thrive.

If you want to bring a little of the magic of Avalon into your own backyard - why not consider planting an apple tree or two?  There are many varieties that need very little space to grow.  The benefits vastly outweigh the initial modest cost and labour involved -- adding beauty and oxygen to our world, blossoms for bees, hiding spots for birds, shade, compost and most importantly -- year after year of free delicious apples!

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Apple Trees in Meadow Sweet Grove
Copyright © Meadow Sweet Grove / V. Buchanan 2018/e2019
1 Comment

Put your best foot forward ... fairy tale shoes.

9/15/2017

4 Comments

 
It's amazing how many fairy tales focus around shoes.  These are just a few that come to mind at present:
  • Cinderella
  • The Elves and the Shoemaker
  • Puss 'n Boots
  • The Wizard of Oz
  • The Red Shoes
  • Wynken, Blynken & Nod
  • The Twelve Dancing Princesses
  • There was an Old Woman who Lived in a Shoe
GIF Magic Shoes
Vintage Puss 'n Boots
Why shoes?  I think, maybe, it is because everyone wears shoes!  Even in the "old days", shoes were something that everyone owned ... or at least wanted to own!  Shoes are incredibly practical - they keep feet warm, dry and safe from damage - a seriously wise investment from peasant to  royalty!  If magic is to be accessible for all, it has to exist in the humblest and simplest of circumstances, and in the most prosaic of possessions - as is certainly the case in all of the tales cited.  

Shoes, in all of these stories, have the power to be the vehicle of transformation ...  or transportation!  So the leap from their true usage is not that far.  Every one of these stories takes the protagonist to a different place. 

Cinderella climbs the ranks in society and in wealth, even as she climbs the stairs to the palace.  The Shoemaker and Puss n' Boots make good on that as well.  In fact, Puss is smart enough to ASK for the boots, as this kitty-cat already knows they are the necessary item to start on a successful journey to status and riches!  Dorothy (The Wizard of Oz) and Karen (The Red Shoes) both have spiritual awakenings and realize that "happiness can be found anywhere", even in poverty or uncomfortable circumstances or surroundings.  Wynken, Blynken & Nod have, at the same time, already arrived and still have a long way to go.  They can afford to literally reach for the stars as they're dreaming safe in bed with a Mother's Love overseeing their slumber.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses require a lot more study - there is just too much going on there and lots of variations to the story.   And the Poor Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe?  There are many analogies suggested for its possible political meaning, but perhaps she is simply trapped in circumstances.  Shoes tied to the back of the wedding carriage, symbolize both a binding contract and fertility.  Well, she certainly got both of those in spades!  It is perhaps a warning to be wary of what a simple pair of shoes can do for you ... be mindful where yours take you.

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017
4 Comments

Q:  Who gave Cinderella's her Dress? #cinderella #ashputtel #waltdisney

9/3/2017

3 Comments

 
Picture
A:   Her Fairy Godmother of course!

Well, although the appearance of the Fairy Godmother to supply the gown is undoubtedly the most common version of the tale - there are others too.

Fairy Godmother
The most popular and most-remembered version was written by Charles Perrault in 1697.  His story introduced the Fairy Godmother who provided Cinderella with a beautiful ballgown and transformed a pumpkin into a coach to take her to the palace.

Tree Spirits ("Elder Mother") and Birds
In Grimm's Fairy Tales, such as Ashputtel/Aschenputtel, Cinderella is never visited by her Fairy Godmother at all.  She must complete seemingly impossible tasks set to her by her Step-mother before she can attend the King's Feast.  The tasks are completed by the birds, ants and other little animals to whom she has been kind.  When even this fails to gain her leave to attend, Ashputtel prays and weeps at her Mother's grave, letting her tears water the hazel tree she herself planted.  The ball runs three nights in succession and each night she finds a new dress, more beautiful than the previous, folded on top of the grave.

Alternatively, the dress is hanging or falls from the branches of the tree or is brought to her by the birds who earlier helped her to complete the other tasks.  The birds also help alert the Prince to the step-sisters' deception when they cut off parts of their heels and toes to fit Ashputtel's shoe and later, at the wedding, they peck out those same offenders' eyes.  But there is enough material there for another post ... and we were talking about the origin of the dress.

These versions nod towards tree spirits such as the dryads and tree worship in general.  The tree is seemingly absent in other versions but the concept of the "Elder Mother" continues on in the Fairy Godmother.

Walt Disney
Walt Disney, forever clever and sometimes misunderstood as one who "sanitized" fairy tales, actually did a fantastic job of working into his  animated classic many of the symbols of the original tale.  The befriending of the little birds and mice that perform a task and make-over the dress that had originally belonged to Cinderella's own mother.   When her step-sisters destroy the dress, Cinderella runs in tears into the garden, where her Fairy Godmother appears and "Bibbity-Bobbity-Boo!"; she conjures up a majestic white gown.   Clever, no?

Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017
3 Comments

The Fox and The Crow

7/21/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
PictureIllustration by Jean de la Fontaine
​I think most people are familiar with Aesop's Fable about The Fox and the Crow.

​In this story, the Crow has found a wonderful round of cheese and is sitting in a tree, when along comes a sweet-talking fox.  He wants the cheese for himself, but how to get it?  He convinces the Crow that she has a beautiful voice and would love to hear her sing.  She is flattered, opens her mouth to sing and, sadly for her, the cheese drops to the ground.  Now, when you think about this fable, it becomes apparent that casting is important.  Crows are really, really intelligent.  Only a sly fox would have been right for this role ... for who else, in the entire animal kingdom would have the ability to out-smart a crow?

                                            Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017 
(gif courtesy of AnimatedImages.org)

0 Comments

Fairy Ring Peril

6/22/2017

0 Comments

 
Almost all folk and fairy tales agree ... you truly must "pay the piper" if you are daft enough to enter a fairy ring!  The folklore on fairy rings, elf rings and witches' circles are replete with stories of mortals foolish enough, or bewitched enough, to join in the irrepressible dance inside that enticing ring of mushrooms.  While it may enable you to see fairies, dance with wild abandon and revel in euphoria ... it comes with a price.  Sometimes the little folk whisk you away to fairyland, where you must serve a fairy master or mistress for a year and a day.  Sometimes it feels like you have only been dancing for a few minutes; when actually hours and hours have passed. You may even be doomed to dance forever ...

Or sometimes, as in the case of Rip Van Winkle (who also partook in a wee bit of fairy mead), only a mere 100 years passed before he "awoke" to his old home ... and all the changes that had come about during his lost years.
Picture
Rip Van Winkle, Artist Unknown
Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017 / edited 2020
0 Comments

The Sad Tale of "Puff, The Magic Dragon"

6/1/2017

0 Comments

 


​Honestly who can hear Peter, Paul and Mary sing this magical song without crying for poor faithful Puff and childhood left behind?  I can still see him waiting in that cave ...
Meadow Sweet Grove claims and owns no rights to this video
​This is the picture of "Puff, The Magic Dragon" that I remember best, though it is a more comical rendition of the song.  But wait!  Isn't that a picture of "The Reluctant Dragon" on the cover!?!  Not Puff?
Picture
33 RPM Record Cover, c 1963 © Walt Disney Records
Picture
45 RPM Record Cover, c 1963 © Walt Disney Records
​
Right!  It's The Reluctant Dragon - an absolutely fantastic Victorian story.  Disney did a lot of records with stories and songs that fit a theme and Puff was included along for the ride in this one.


​~ Puff, The Magic Dragon ~


"Oh Puff, the magic dragon lived by the sea,
And frolicked in the autumn mist,
in a land called Honnah Lee ... 
​

 . . .  A dragon lives forever but not so little boys,
Painted wings and giant's rings make way for other toys.
One grey night it happened, Jackie Paper came no more,
And Puff that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar.

His head was bent in sorrow, green scales fell like rain,
Puff no longer went to play along the cherry lane.
Without his life-long friend, Puff could not be brave,
So Puff that mighty dragon sadly slipped into his cave."


Excerpt from "Puff, The Magic Dragon" by Leonard Lipton, Peter Yarrow © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc, BMG Rights Management US, LLC
Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017 / edited 2021
0 Comments

Spring Clean like Cinderella with Kindness and Humility

4/21/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Antique Illustration, Source: The Graphics Fairy
Cinderella gently accepted her role as servant to her Step-Mother and Step-Sisters after her Father died.  She had a silent pride in her work and found joy in the little things that life offered.

In the older tales of Cinderella, she gives scraps of food and performs other deeds of kindness to the mice, birds and ants; though she receives little herself in life.  Later, when she longs to attend the Royal Ball; her Step-Mother sets her three impossible tasks (always the magic 3 in fairy tales) that she must complete before being granted permission. The little woodland friends that Cinderella has befriended come to her aid and complete the tasks.  Walt Disney understood the importance of the message in this fairy tale and re-invented the mice and birds in his animated version as Cinderella's helpers, and even seamstresses, who make-over her Mother's old gown in time for the Ball.  This illustrates that sincere kindness is not wasted.  In return, it will come back three-fold. 

When you're doing your Spring Cleaning this year, also remember to be humble.  While an invitation to a Royal Ball may not be in our immediate futures, we can certainly take pleasure in cleaning and tidying our own precious homes and treasured possessions. We may find things to donate along the way that we no longer need, bring out the beauty of furniture and silver cutlery with a good polish or uncover a lost item. To help you along, don't forget that Walt Disney knew a great and powerful magic that he incorporated in many of his productions.  Sing while you work!  Or put on your favourite music. It really does make the work go faster.  There is nothing more enchanting than Disney's scene of Cinderella, in rags, scrubbing the entry hall, masterfully singing, "Sing Sweet Nightingale" ... while her Step-Sisters, with all the advantages in the world, are upstairs butchering the song!

So Spring Clean like Cinderella and watch the good magic come back to you in your fresh and tidy clean home.

​Meadow Sweet Grove © V. Buchanan 2017 / edited 2021
0 Comments
    Picture
            ~ SHOP ~
    FREE SHIPPING WHEN YOUR ORDER TOTALS
                        $150 OR MORE!!
    (Offer available in Canada & USA only)

    CA$13.99
    CA$22.99
    CA$4.99
    CA$7.99
    Picture
    Let this blue fairy magically transport you to the Store!
    Picture
    Picture
    Or walk to the Store here!

    Meadow Sweet Grove

    Folklore & Magic Archives

    Categories

    All
    Aesop's Fables
    Animals
    Christmas / Yule
    Easter / Ostara
    Expressions & Idioms
    Fairies
    Fairy Tales
    Fantasy Creatures
    Garden
    Gods / Goddesses
    Halloween / Samhain
    Imbolg / 1st Spring
    Magic
    May Day / Beltane
    Mother Goose
    Poetry
    Spells
    Superstitions

    RSS Feed

Blog-Articles
Blog-Folklore & Magic
Sold Archives & Reviews
Rhian's Renderings
Midnight at the Grove
Finding Service
About
Contact
Picture

Shop

Payment, Shipping & Policies
PayPal Logo
Users of payment apps (eg Google Pay) can checkout on Etsy. See "CONTACT".
Disclaimer: Many of the items sold are vintage or pre-loved. Quality of vintage items vary with the manufacturing methods available at the time of production. They are not made to current standards of manufacturing ... and in my opinion, that is usually a good thing! They tend to be higher quality, last longer and include more attention to detail than today's products. However, safety standards do change over time, items do deteriorate with age, and it is up to the customer to decide how they will use each product.
All rights reserved. No part of this website, including but not limited to written articles, photographs, graphics, videos or animations, may be reproduced, in any form, written or digital, without the express and prior written permission of the author: V. Buchanan of Meadow Sweet Grove. Requests for said permission may be directed to: meadowsweetgrove@hotmail.com. (GIFs graciously provided by: animatedimages.org & R. Buchanan)
Follow the Grove at:
Proudly powered by Weebly
Copyright © Meadow Sweet Grove / V. Buchanan 2016 - 2022
  • Home
  • Shop
  • Blog-Recipes & Extras
  • Blog-Folklore & Magic
  • Payment, Shipping & Policies
  • Sold Archives & Reviews
  • About
  • Contact
  • Midnight at the Grove
  • ETSY Shop
  • Finding Service
  • Rhian's Renderings