How Ravens Came To Be Black

Once upon a time and long ago, Odin was walking under the branches of Yggdrasil when two ravens swooped down and settled upon his shoulders. The raven on his left was white as the mists of Niflheim (for back then, all ravens were white), and his eyes mirrored the clouds. The raven on his right glistened in the sun like the snows of Jotunheim, and looked at him with bright clear eyes. And Odin called the raven to his right Hugin, which is Thought, and the other one he named Munin, which means Memory.

As the days passed, Hugin and Munin matched the Allfather’s curiosity for everything in the Nine Worlds, flying around and watching and listening to whatever they could, and in the evenings, they returned to him to tell him all they had seen and heard in the long hours of the day. They told him about the slow thoughts of the mountains, the colorful and ever-changing memories of men, and the sound of the song in the heart of everything that lives.

And though Odin delighted in the knowledge they brought, he always felt they had missed something, and he said, “That was much, but not yet enough. Tomorrow you must fly again. Try to rest now.” And the ravens slept uneasily, not knowing what they had missed, and every morning, they flew out again.

There came one of many evenings after another long day when they had once again seen all that Sunna’s shine could show, had listened to all men’s bright thoughts in Midgard, and read their waking memories, when Hugin said to Munin, “We cannot return yet. It is not enough. We must go farther.” And they flew on into the night.

And Hugin flew through the dark dreams of mankind and heard their thoughts which they dared not think during the daytime, not even before themselves. He winged through the black void between the stars where there was nothing at all, and on to the twilight world of the future, where there is equally nothing and everything at once. And when he returned, his feathers, from tip to tip, were black as the night.

And Munin flew through the minds of men into the shady corners and cellars where they had hidden all the things they did not like, and locked them away, saying “I do not remember.” He soared through the sightless void of Ginnungagap, and on and on until he arrived at the ashes of Ragnarok which obscured this age from the next. And when he returned, his feathers, from beak to tail, were as black as soot.

The ravens returned to Odin just before the break of morning, when the night is at its darkest, and when they settled back on his shoulders, he knew all that they had seen, and they did not need to tell. And he understood what had been missing, and nodded, and said, “It is much, and it is enough. For tonight. You may rest.” And the ravens blinked drowsily into the first rays of the rising sun which glinted on their now black feathers, tucked their beaks under their wings, and slept very well.

Since that time, all ravens have been seen to be as black as a shadow on a starless night. Very rarely it happens that somebody catches a glimpse of a white raven, and should you ever be lucky enough to see one, you’ll know that you have wandered far off and back into the land of memory, before ravens came to be black.

© Michaela Macha


License: This poem may be freely distributed, provided it remains
unchanged, including the copyright notice and this License:

This work by Michaela Macha (www.odins-gift.com) is licensed
under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives License.

American Triangle

Seen him playing in his backyard
Young boy just starting out
So much history in this landscape
So much confusion, so much doubt

Been there drinking on that front porch
Angry kids, mean and dumb
Looks like a painting, that blue skyline
God hates fags where we come from

'Western skies' don't make it right
'Home of the brave' don't make no sense
I've seen a scarecrow wrapped in wire
Left to die on a high ridge fence
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold wind blowing, Wyoming

See two coyotes run down a deer
Hate what we don't understand
You pioneers give us your children
But it's your blood that stains their hands

Somewhere that road forks up ahead
To ignorance and innocence
Three lives drift on different winds
Two lives ruined, one life spent

Words by Bernie Taupin and Music by Elton John

Don't Complain About Your Job, eh?

The Difference between Men and Women

1. NAMES
If Laurie, Linda, Elizabeth and Barbara go out for lunch, they will call each other Laurie, Linda, Elizabeth and Barbara.
If Mark, Chris, Eric and Tom go out, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat Boy, Godzilla, Peanut-Head and Scrappy.

2. EATING OUT
When the bill arrives, Mark, Chris, Eric and Tom will each throw in $20, even though it's only for $32.50. None of them will have anything smaller and none will actually admit they want change back.
When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.

3. MONEY
A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs.
A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn't need but it's on sale.

4. BATHROOMS
A man has five items in his bathroom: a toothbrush, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel from the Marriott.
The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 337. A man would not be able to identify most of these items.

5. ARGUMENTS
A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

6. CATS
Women love cats.
Men say they love cats, but when women aren't looking, men kick cats.

7. FUTURE
A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.

8. SUCCESS
A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.
A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

9. MARRIAGE
A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change and she does.

10. DRESSING UP
A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the garbage, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.
A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.

11. NATURAL
Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed.
Women somehow deteriorate during the night.

12. OFFSPRING
A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favourite foods, secret fears and hopes and dreams.
A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.

13. THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Any married man should forget his mistakes. There's no use in two people remembering the same thing.

Grandma's Apron

The use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath, but along with that, it served as a holder for removing hot pans from the oven; it was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.

From the chicken-coop the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven. When company came those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids; And when the weather was cold, grandma wrapped it around her arms.

Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.

Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron. From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled it carried out the hulls. In the fall the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.

When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds. When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.

It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that "old-time apron" that served so many purposes.

The One That Got Away

(from the Hymiskviða)

While Ran was the goddess most feared for fishing for men, it was Thor who was most feared as fisherman. With a bronze hook forged by the secretive dwarves in their dark hills, no fish or whale that bit it could ever let go, and the line they forged was nigh as strong as the fetters of Fenris, that no thing swimming could ever escape.

Before men and giants, before gods and elves would Thor boast his every triumph. With his hook in one hand, and his mead horn the other, he raised his voice to shout his victory over a mighty whale that sought to flee his grasp. Thor boasted thus: "No thing that swims lake or ocean can best me, no thing that swims escape me, no beast take bait of mine, save that I catch it!"

Hymir, jotun kin to Angrboda, had blood feud with the Aesir, and saw a way to use Thor’s boast to humble him, and win the fearsome hammer Mjollner from him. Hymir thought to trap Thor with a boast, and force a wager on him.

"Mighty are you indeed, bold Thor, but I know a deep swimmer you could not hope to best, that your mighty hook and boasting strength not equal. What would you wager that I can guide you to such prey as even mighty Thor must yield to?"

Thor had bested every shark, fish, and whale in the seas, had matched his strength with jotun and etin, and never once been bested. His blood fired with the challenge, the mighty fisherman boasted thus:

"By Othinn, my father, I will wager the most feared life taker of all the oceans that any prey you can guide me to I can take, as long as you hold the tiller of the ship while I fish!"

Hymir laughed and called it done, for by the magics taught him by his dread mother, he had scryed the deadliest of all things free on Midgard, the one thing that even Thor could not hope to overwhelm before the end of days. With this trick would he win from Thor the bane of jotnar, the hammer Mjollner.

As Thor approached Hymir’s giant longship, the jotun laughed at the cod tossed over Thor’s shoulder. "Such puny bait will not work today, you will need something bigger, little Thor!", laughed the giant. Thor was not amused, andswiftly struck with his hammer, knocking the head off one of the jotun’s grazing cattle. Easily the size of a grown man, the head was casually picked up by Thor and tossed onto the waiting ship. "Then I will give him beef!"

Thor looked upon the giant’s ship, it had twelve oars and a square sail set on a mast he could just span with his own broad arms. She was high prowed, with thick strong strakes like the ribs of a sleeping dragon. Thor was well pleased with the ship, and manfully took two oars and rowed clear of the headlands where the sail alone could carry them.

Baiting his magic hook with the ox skull, he gently spoke to the hook. "There is some trick afoot, my beauty!", Thor whispered . "But you and I have fished for shark and whale through the storm tossed seas and never lost. We will not lose to any jotnar trick today."

Thor cast the oxhead two bowshots ahead of the ship, and took up his reel. Hymir stood at the steering oar with a broad smile upon his face, for he knew what waited in the fjord was no shark, no whale, nor even a dragon, but Jörmungandr, the Midgard Serpent.

With a scream, the line began to sing off Thor’s reel, and he laughed with the joy of it. Hymir laughed as well, for he knew that the prey on Thor’s hook was destined to be Thor’s wyrd, that Thor and Jörmungandr were destined to kill each other at Ragnarok, and that Thor would have to give up. Thor would have to lose the bet, and give up the greatest life taker in all the oceans. For Hymir meant to win Mjollner.

As Thor fought the line, it bent his rod like a spring sapling, and Thor’s heavy brows rose in awe. He had held a Sperm Whale a full ship length long with that rod unbent; what manner of beast had he caught this time? Fighting backwards, he wrapped his belt around the mast, and set his mighty thews to haul forth his prize from the deep.

The sail snapped and slapped as the ship turned into the wind, the heavy prow cut the waves like a sword through a stalk of wheat, and Hymir laughed at the steering oar to see the ship dragged behind the catch like a kitten that has caught at a goodwife’s ball of yarn. Thor sweated and heaved, working the heavy reel, all the while thanking the dwarves that had made it unbreakable. After an hour of driving farther from shore, the waves were now breaking over the prow like berserks through a shieldwall, and the great ship was groaning as it bent and flexed.

At last the beast´s head broke the surface, the dread serpent’s head with jaws wide enough to swallow a whole ox, and venom dripping fangs, sword-long each. "Jörmungandr!", cursed Thor. With a lunge the serpent struck at the mighty giant-bane, but with his iron gauntlet the Thunderer smashed him aside. Again the world-spanning serpent drove for the deeps to escape Thor, and the battle neither would survive.

"Yes, Jörmungandr! Now you must give up, now you must yield to me the greatest slayer in all the oceans!", shouted Hymir.

No mighty thinker was Thor, but no oathbreaker either. He could not yield to Hymir, but how was he to land Jörmungandr and live? No man or god could shy from their wyrd, and the Raven Lord´s son was not one to try. With a shrug he noted the line playing out fast, and with a will set to reel the fleeing serpent back. Win or lose, live or die, no thing that swam escaped once it had taken Thor’s hook!

The seas were whipped with whitecaps, and the ship groaned and flexed through the waves, as a stout shield before axe and spear. The ship was awash in water, and the great strakes of the ship flexed and moaned like a woman in childbirth.

As the great waves would break upon, mighty Thor he would shout "Ha!" As the serpent would turn to strike, Thor would smite him again, shouting "Ho!" All the while Hymir shouted for Thor to surrender, the mighty ship began to break apart under the pounding, but the red bearded serpent-bane just fought on and laughed.

At last the great mast snapped above Thor’s head, and the ship began to founder with water washing the steersman’s knees. His courage broken, the clever jotun cried to Thor: "Cut the line, cut the line, or we will all die!"

Thor looked at him with surprise. "Lose the wager? Never! I am Thor, and by no jotnar, serpent, or god named oathbreaker!"

Hymir broke completely seeing the serpent turn to strike at Thor again, the serpent’s head carrying the dragon prow off in splinters when Sif’s mighty husband struck him. The ship would shatter in the hungry seas long before Thor would yield an inch. Hymir would die before Thor would yield, and Jörmungandr would not yield either! His courage washed away by the storm tossed seas, his will broken by Thor’s laughter, the mighty giant surrendered at last.

"I release you from the wager, I give up! Cut the line, mighty Thor, and I will tell the Nine Worlds that you would not have yielded first!", Hymir shouted.

With a grin, Thor cut the dwarven line. Chuckling sadly as he watched Jörmungandr dive desperately for the deeps, Thor began to laugh as he bailed the sinking ship.

"How can I not praise your generosity, good Hymir?", laughed Thor.

"How am I generous?", asked the shaken and confused jotun.

"So generous that you would not only yield the wager to me, but the stakes to your cousin Jörmungandr. Once I cut the line, it was the serpent who took your prize away; the fish hook forged for me by the dwarves, the most feared life taker in all the oceans."

As the serpent drove for the oceans depths, and Thor began to row for the shore, clever Hymir wept that not only had Thor bested his courage, but outwitted him. Rather than humbling Thor and winning Mjollner, he had nearly died for a fish-hook!


© John T Mainer, April 30 2005

This work by John T Mainer is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives License.

33 Reasons To Smile

1. My husband and I divorced over religious differences. He thought he was God and I didn't.

2. I don't suffer from insanity; I enjoy every minute of it.

3. I work hard because millions on welfare depend on me.

4. Some people are alive only because its illegal to kill them.

5. I used to have a handle on life, but it broke.

6. Don't take life too seriously; no one gets out alive.

7. You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me.

8. Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.

9. Earth is the insane asylum for the universe.

10. Quoting one is plagiarism; quoting many is research.

11. I'm not a complete idiot -- some parts are missing.

12. Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.

13. NyQuil, the stuffy, sneezy, why-the-heck-is-the-room-spinning medicine.

14. God must love stupid people; he made so many.

15. The gene pool could use a little chlorine.

16. It IS as BAD as you think and they ARE out to get you.

17. Consciousness: that annoying time between naps.

18. Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?

19. MOP AND GLOW - Floor wax used by Three Mile Island cleanup crew.

20. Being "over the hill" is much better than being under it.

21. Wrinkled was not one of the things I wanted to be when I grew up.

22. Procrastinate Now! (I do this well)

23. My dog can lick anyone!

24. I have a degree in liberal arts; do you want fries with that?

25. FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION. It comes bundled with the software.

26. A hangover is the wrath of grapes.

27. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a cash advance.

28. STUPIDITY IS NOT A HANDICAP. Park elsewhere!

29. They call it PMS because Mad Cow Disease was already taken.

30. He who dies with the most toys is nonetheless dead.

31. A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS, but it uses up three thousand times the memory on your computer.

32. HAM AND EGGS -- A day's work for a chicken, a lifetime commitment for a pig.

33. The trouble with life is there's no background music.

The Horny Cock

A farmer wanted to have his hens serviced, so he went to the market looking for a rooster. He was hoping he could get a special rooster--one that would service all of his many hens.

When he told this to the market vendor, the vendor replied: "I have just the rooster for you. Henry here is the horniest rooster you will ever see!"

So the farmer took Henry back to the farm. Before setting him loose in the hen house, though, he gave Henry a little pep talk: "Henry," he said, "I'm counting on you to do your stuff." And without a word, Henry strutted into the hen house.

Henry was as fast as he was furious, mounting each hen like a thunderbolt. There was much squawking and many feathers flying, till Henry had finished having his way with each hen.

But, Henry didn't stop there. Henry went into the barn and mounted all of the horses, one by one, and still at the same frantic pace. Then he went to the pig house, where he did the same.

The farmer, watching all of this with disbelief cried out, "Stop, Henry!! You'll kill yourself!!"

But Henry continued, seeking out each farm animal in the same manner.

Well, the next morning, the farmer looked out and saw Henry lying there on his lawn. His legs were up in the air, his eyes rolled back, and his long tongue hanging out. A buzzard was already circling above Henry.

The farmer walked up to Henry saying, "Oh you poor thing, look what you did, you've gone and killed yourself. I warned you little buddy."

"Shhhhhhh," Henry whispered, "The buzzard's getting closer."

Coffee, Anyone?

An interactive flash animation...

Follow these instructions:

1. Choose your language and Put the coin in the slot

2. Choose the drink you want

3. Click on the cup after it fills

4. Click on "Open" or "Apri"

Click here or on the picture to start.

Sister Barbara

Sitting by the window of her convent, Sister Barbara opened a letter from home one evening. Inside the letter was a $100 bill her parents had sent.

Sister Barbara smiled at the gesture. As she read the letter by the window, she noticed a shabbily dressed stranger leaning against the lamp post below.

Quickly, she wrote, "Don't despair. Sister Barbara," on a piece of paper, wrapped the $100 bill in it, got the man's attention and tossed it out the window to him. The stranger picked it up, and with a puzzled expression and a tip of his hat, went off down the street.

The next day, Sister Barbara was told that a man was at her door, insisting on seeing her. She went down, and found the stranger waiting. Without a word, he handed her a huge wad of $100 bills.

"What's this?" she asked.

"That's the $8,000 you have coming Sister," he replied. "Don't Despair paid 80-to-1."

Memories

A little house with three bedrooms and one car on the street, A mower that you had to push to make the grass look neat.

In the kitchen on the wall we only had one phone, And no need for recording things, someone was always home.

We only had a living room where we would congregate, Unless it was at mealtime in the kitchen where we ate.

We had no need for family rooms or extra rooms to dine, When meeting as a family those two rooms would work out fine.

We only had one TV set, and channels maybe two, But always there was one of them with something worth the view.

For snacks we had potato chips that tasted like a chip, And if you wanted flavor there was Lipton's onion dip.

Store-bought snacks were rare because my mother liked to cook, And nothing can compare to snacks in Betty Crocker's book.

The snacks were even healthy with the best ingredients, No labels with a hundred things that make not a bit of sense.

Weekends were for family trips or staying home to play, We all did things together -- even go to church to pray.

When we did our weekend trips, depending on the weather, No one stayed at home because we liked to be together.

Sometimes we would separate to do things on our own, But we knew where the others were without our own cell phone.

Then there were the movies with your favorite movie star, And nothing can compare to watching movies in your car.

Then there were the picnics at the peak of summer season, Pack a lunch and find some trees and never need a reason.

Get a baseball game together with all the friends you know, Have real action playing ball -- and no game video.

Remember when the doctor used to be the family friend, And didn't need insurance or a lawyer to defend?

The way that he took care of you or what he had to do, Because he took an oath and strived to do the best for you.

Remember going to the store and shopping casually, And when you went to pay for it you used your own money?

Nothing that you had to swipe or punch in some amount, Remember when the cashier person had to really count?

Remember when we breathed the air, it smelled so fresh and clean, And chemicals were not used on the grass to keep it green.

The milkman used to go from door to door, And it was just a few cents more than going to the store.

There was a time when mailed letters came right to your door, Without a lot of junk mail ads sent out by every store.

The mailman knew each house by name and knew where it was sent; There were not loads of mail addressed to "Present Occupant."

Remember when the words "I do" meant that you really did, And not just temporarily 'til someone blows their lid.

T'was no such thing as "no one's fault; we just made a mistake," There was a time when married life was built on give and take.

There was a time when just one glance was all that it would take, And you would know the kind of car, the model and the make.

They didn't look like turtles trying to squeeze out every mile; They were streamlined, white walls, fins, and really had some style.

One time the music that you played whenever you would jive, Was from a vinyl, big-holed record called a forty-five.

The record player had a post to keep them all in line, And then the records would drop down and play one at a time.

Oh sure, we had our problems then, just like we do today, And always we were striving, trying for a better way.

And every year that passed us by brought new and greater things, We now can even program phones with music or with rings.

Oh, the simple life we lived still seems like so much fun, How can you explain a game, just kick the can and run?

And why would boys put baseball cards between bicycle spokes, And for a nickel red machines had little bottled Cokes?

This life seemed so much easier and slower in some ways, I love the new technology but I sure miss those days.

So time moves on and so do we, and nothing stays the same, But I sure love to reminisce and walk down memory lane.

Cute Shots

Free Puppy

A friend of mine is looking for a good home for a puppy he recently acquired. This dog has had a troubled past, but with the right care and rehabilitation, he will most likely become a good and faithful friend.

Click here to see the cutie!

I'll drink to that...

A cowgirl, who is visiting Texas from Arkansas, walks into a bar and orders three mugs of Bud. She sits in the back of the room, drinking a sip out of each one in turn.

When she finishes them, she comes back to the bar and orders three more.

The bartender approaches and tells the cowgirl, "You know, a mug goes flat after I draw it. It would taste better if you bought one at a time."

The cowgirl replies, "Well, you see, I have two sisters. One is in Australia, the other is in Dublin. When we all left our home in Arkansas, we promised that we'd drink this way to remember the days when we drank together. So I'm drinking one beer for each of my sisters and one for myself."

The bartender admits that this is a nice custom, and leaves it there.

The cowgirl becomes a regular in the bar, and always drinks the same way. She orders three mugs and drinks them in turn.

One day, she comes in and only orders two mugs. All the regulars take notice and fall silent. When she comes back to the bar for the second round, the bartender says, "I don't want to intrude on your grief, but I wanted to offer my condolences on your loss."

The cowgirl looks quite puzzled for a moment, then a light dawns in her eyes and she laughs. "Oh, no, everybody's just fine," she explains, "It's just that my husband and I joined the Baptist Church and I had to quit drinking."

"Hasn't affected my sisters though."

Happiness...

My Father

Toon Town's Pagan Summer Fest.

So, was another wonderful Fest! I enjoyed meeting new people and really enjoyed a deepening friendship with others that come every year. Ave and her few volunteers managed to pull off one of my favourite experiences at Fest. 

The food was outstanding (are we really camping???). Friday night was baked pasta and tossed salad. Breakfasts included muffins, cheese biscuits, fruit and yogurt and juice boxes! Nice to wake up to. Lunch on Sat was sandwiches, salad and a fruit salad, which I'm sure tasted great even tough I can't eat melons.... Supper Saturday was burgers and smokies. Coupled with veggie salad and an oriental pasta salad (my favourite). Yum!

we did 2 crafts, and though I gave up on the yarn bowls, the painted rock craft had me inspired by a dear friend who passed away -- I made the lady bug for you, Brenda. 

There were the opening and closing circles daily, always a favourite of mine. Saturday we did circle dances, a staple for me and a lot of fun. (Goddess save Godsmack!), although I enjoyed "Mother" more this year. When all is said and done, this festival is something I look forward to to recharge myself spiritually. Goddess Bless Festmas! Blessed Be!

Person of Character

The Dark Hedges of Ireland

Ireland's got more than potatoes. These hauntingly beautiful trees have been named The Dark Hedges and were planted more than 200 years ago. Some say the ghostly "Grey Lady" sometimes roams between the trees. Can you see her? #terrifictuesday #trees #Ireland #haunted #discovery

Find 30 Animals