Imbolc
I spent last weekend with the other Preachainees, celebrating Imbolc the best way we know how--with forges. Imbolc is Brigid's holiday, and Brigid is all about creation and transformation, poetry and smithcraft. We keep Imbolc really casual, because it's generally very cold outside, which makes planning a camping event tough. We converge on someone's house, make way too much food, try to share some valuable skills, and have a good time without fretting about keeping everything historically accurate. John the Farrier brought a couple of coal forges over to Sig and Macha's farm and we got to work on some iron and hang out with horses, dogs, and friends.
Our iron workers this time around spanned the generations, from six years old to 80-ish. I'm now going to just toss pictures into the post, because I can't bear to leave many out. Metalurgy is magic, and horses are very very cool, and I love these people.
And, as if that weren't wonderful enough, I came home to find flowers from my husband and beautifully-dyed yarn from a friend.
I am a very, very lucky girl, and I know it.
You know I want your life, right? I've told you that often enough now.
I promise this year I'll start working on having my own, so I quit being weird stalky person.
I love that picture with the women standing, and what is the person with the red sash doing?
Posted by: k | February 06, 2008 at 01:47 AM
The young man with the red sash (who I've known since he was thisss big, and who is now eleventy-seven feet tall--or 6'5" maybe) is using a rasp to smooth down the edges of a knife blade he's just finished forging, so that he can forge it a bit more and then sharpen it.
Posted by: lanea | February 06, 2008 at 07:59 AM
Lucky girl! Looks like fun--you know, in a way that doesn't look like a lot of fun to me, but looks like heaven to you. So yay for you! Beautiful flowers and yarn--now that we can see eye to eye on!
Posted by: Rachel | February 06, 2008 at 11:43 AM
Also? Exclamation point!
Posted by: Rachel | February 06, 2008 at 11:44 AM
Excellent pics, Lanea! Thanks for posting them for those of us who couldn't attend. We miss you fine folk T-H-I-S M-U-C-H!
Posted by: Conall | February 06, 2008 at 02:09 PM
Wow, that looked like fun.
Pretty flowers!
Pretty yarn (evil chuckle).
Jen
Posted by: Jennifer | February 06, 2008 at 04:53 PM
Okay, another thing. You've used that word before - "prechainees." Does it mean pre-chain? If so, who invented chain? And how did they haul things? Very strong rope?
Posted by: k | February 07, 2008 at 05:17 PM