magic words

 

Magic Words (after Nalungiaq)

In the very earliest time, when both people and animals lived on earth, a person could become an animal if he wanted to and an animal could become a human being. Sometimes they were people and sometimes animals and there was no difference. All spoke the same language. That was the time when words were like magic. The human mind had mysterious powers. A word spoken by chance might have strange consequences. It would suddenly come alive and what people wanted to happen could happen – all you had to do was say it. Nobody could explain this: That’s the way it was.

Shaking the Pumpkin; traditional poetry of the Indian North Americas, Jerome Rothenburg; page 41 University of New Mexico; revised edition 1991

I love this story of creation, I suppose we are always looking for the Why&How of our origin, knowing full well there aren't any answers, no easy ones anyway, perceptions shift, attitudes change, science progresses; we learn more about more leading to more questions. That's all okay, because we humans don't change much, we share stories as we have done since we could. 

Yet another Box 

This old box-frame belonged to my grandmother on papa's side , who at one point in her life helped out a lepidopterologist; this was before she got married I think, or during early marriage before having had children. The box held numerous butterflies, all pinned down with their Latin names. When gran moved to a nursing home late eighties stuff had to be moved and changed hands. I liked the frame plus butterflies as a decorative object and it has been in my possession for over thirty years. Once the butterflies had disintegrated and become dust  I used it to frame several artworks and recently decided it could serve yet another purpose: the telling of this tale. The critters appearing in my drawings are usually birds, dogs, the occasional cat, sometimes a mouse or giraffe, but butterflies hardly ever if I remember correctly. However, the butterfly-box had to have butterflies, which is why they appeared. Along the bottom are 4 wishbones, if we are making it up as we go along might as well make a wish

 

above, no glass, below with glass and moving ever so slightly (darn I was trying to make a photograph)

cloud tree inspired by Jude's