"This is the strangest life I've ever known." ~ Jim Morrison
It started out as a normal Saturday morning with some errands to run, when something utterly random and strange happened. I ended up unexpectedly in a not very familiar part of town when I noticed a woman setting up for a garage sale in her driveway. She had a bookshelf set up and I noted we had some common interests including a fairy book she had put into the mix. I struck up a conversation with her, and I spoke with her for perhaps ten minutes in total. She was a lovely Irish lady by the name of Gwenifer.
Before I went on my way she said she had something she figured I might like to have. I must state at this point that she was, until that morning, a complete stranger to me, and for the most part she still very much is. She could have had no idea my interests, or that I love, and collect swords.
She went over to her porch and brought the sword pictured above out to me. Of course I was highly intrigued and delighted by this beautiful sword.
Her story as to how the sword had come into her possession was that a drunken actor apparently gave it to her in a pub in Stratford. She said she had figured it had been used as a prop. This sort of suprised me as this would be a dangerous "prop" because this is a very real short sword or rapier.
Beautiful, light weight and a dream to hold and handle. I was enchanted immediately. I said to her that I loved it and on the spot she just gave it to me.
She gave it to me.
Gwenifer, taped a coin to the hilt, which you can see in the photo above, and she proceed to present me with the sword in an Irish Gaelic ceremony. Incredible as I am now deeply immersed in researching my own Celtic heritage.
The gift of an accompanying coin when presented with a sharp object is a widespread tradition in many different cultures, and that includes knives, scissors, and swords. It is a symbolic offering for not severing a friendship or that the sword in turn will not be used against the person who gifted it.
I told her about my fairy tree, which is where my sword is now proudly hanging. A protection of all the faery and nature spirits.
This was a very Arthurian-like event in an unfamiliar neighbourhood, and a strange woman named Gwenifer who was distributing swords from her driveway.
I believe this gives me a mandate to form a government ;)
There is a long standing love affair with swords and both sides of my family. My Mother fenced as did my Uncles who won many tournaments, and trophies including a medal at the Pan Am games.
Pictured below my Uncles Mike, Joe, and Arthur.
I love swords and I collect them. Swords are magical tools and this one is very special. My very own sword of time. Clearly this sword wanted to be mine. It did not just call out to me, it ran to me. And I LOVE it.
Updated 2018: Five days after I originally posted this to my web journal Out Of My Mind's Eye I had a UFO experience over Lake Huron, in Ontario, Canada. I find that UFOs, for me, come with a flurry of synchronicities that may not feel at the time UFO or cosmic magic related, but they come in with that wave or zones of strangeness that have spontaneously erupted throughout my life .
Originally published on July 13th, 2016 to my Out Of My Mind's Eye web journal
No comments:
Post a Comment