Saturday 22 September 2012

Poetry Saturday . . . Meg Merrilies



Old Meg she was a gipsy,
And lived upon the moors;
Her bed it was the brown heath turf,
And her house was out of doors.


Her apples were swart blackberries,
Her currants, pods o'broom;
Her wine was dew of the wild white rose,
Her book a churchyard tomb.


Her brothers were the craggy hills,
Her sisters larchen trees;
Alone with her great family
She lived as she did please.


No breakfast had she many a morn,
No dinner many a noon,
And 'stead of supper she would stare
Full hard against the moon.


But every morn, of woodbine fresh
She made her garlanding,
And every night the dark glen yew
She wove, and she would sing.


And with her fingers, old and brown,
She plaited mats o' rushes,
And gave them to the cottagers
She met among the bushes.


Old Meg was brave as Margaret Queen
And tall as Amazon;
An old red blanket cloak she wore,
A chip hat had she on.
God rest her aged bones somewhere;
She died a full long agone!
~John Keats

 John Keats

John Keats was told the story of 'Meg Merrilies', a Scottish Gipsy woman, by a friend while they were on a walking tour of Scotland. This is a light-hearted poem describing the beautifully free; though hard and lonely; life of the homeless gipsy.

I quite fell in love with it.  I've always wanted a gypsy caravan.  Some people use them for garden sheds . . . I'd fancy one as a studio.  I think I would feel quite, quite inspired within it's walls . . . that or a 


Shepherd's Hut!  Yeh, that would be just the ticket!  With heating and electrics it would be the perfect studio!! 

Speaking of studio's, I went to the gallery yesterday, Funky Aardvark, here in Chester and I am going to become a member and some of my work will be there all the time.  I was thinking of beginning with an assortment of my cards and prints, and some of my matchbook dolls.  They have monthly seminars too, on marketing etc.  It's a way to get my work out there and exposed.  Every little helps!

We have a very busy day ahead of us today.  The dog groomer canceled the other day as they were ill, so we have a make up appointment this morning.  We're off to Neston to the dog groomers for 10:30 and then when we get back I have supper to prepare. We've invited our good friends Audrey and Peter around.  The four of us all have birthdays in August/September and so we usually get together to celebrate.  A bit late doing it this year, but they do say better late than ever!

Whatever your Saturday holds for you today, may it be filled with little pockets of sunshine and joy the whole day through!

"We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have,
but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have."
~Frederick Koenig


 

Cooking in The English Kitchen today . . . delicious Apricot & Prune Puddings with a Lemon &  Butterscotch Sauce.

 

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