Painting by Josephine Wall – ‘Mer Angel’
This mythical creature is in a state of blissful repose as waterfalls cascade from her hair into a watery world of lily trees and river horses, galloping free down flowery slopes.The quiet beauty of the moment and the company of her own thoughts bring her comfort and a sense of peace.
When A Woman Cries
(words and music by Eric J. Sawyer)
When the wolf howls and the moon is high
Here the cat bone in the silver skies
But when a woman cries
O Lord, when a woman cries
Knife in blood moon when lovers kiss
Snakey business and it goes like this
Fine young women come gather round
Gypsy night-flies will settle down
On Gypsy woman
Gypsy Bible will drag you down
Rasta Vision will slow your mind
Sun is dying; someone’s born
The moon is crying but we carry on
We carry on
Carry on
We carry on
When the wolf howls ….
add. When a woman cries
Knife in blood moon ….
add. Yeah
Harmonica solo.
We carry on
We carry on
Some possible intepretations:
‘cat bone’
A black cat bone is a type of lucky charm used in the African American magical tradition of hoodoo. It is thought to ensure a variety of positive effects, such as invisibility, good luck, protection from malevolent magic, rebirth after death, and romantic success.
After a black cat is caught, it is almost universally boiled alive in a pot of water at midnight, so that its bones may be more easily looked over by the hoodooist. One particular bone, special to each individual cat, contains all the magical efficacy alone. A variety of rituals and methods are used to determine which bone is the right one, and preparation before the cat’s slaughter can vary according to tradition
‘knife in blood moon, when lovers kiss’
Various different tools are used in Wiccan ritual. Chief amongst them in importance are the pentacle, athame (or sword), wand and chalice, each of which represents one of the four elements of earth, air, fire and water.
The hunter’s moon—also known as blood moon or sanguine moon—is the first full moon after the harvest moon, which is the full moon nearest the autumnal equinox.
’Gypsy Bible will drag you down’
Common methods used for fortune telling in Europe and the Americas include astromancy, horary astrology, pendulum reading, spirit board reading, tasseography (reading tea leaves in a cup), cartomancy (fortune telling with cards), tarot reading, crystallomancy (reading of a crystal sphere), lithomancy (reading of stones or gems), and chiromancy (palmistry, reading of the palms). The last three have traditional associations in the popular mind with the Roma and Sinti people (often called “gypsies”).
’Rasta vision will slow you mind’ – His beliefs deeply influenced the Rastafari, who took his statements as a prophecy of the crowning of Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia. Early Rastas were associated with his Back-to-Africa movement in Jamaica. This early Rastafari movement was also influenced by a separate, proto-Rasta movement known as the Afro-Athlican Church that was outlined in a religious text known as the Holy Piby — where Garvey was proclaimed to be a prophet as well. Garvey himself never identified with the Rastafari movement, and was, in fact, raised as a Methodist who went on to become a Roman Catholic.
‘snakey’
A typical Dublin (Ireland) slang for a secret meeting between a boy and girl, often when they are in a relationship with someone else, usually involves a “romantic” trip to the local park.
