Hi Deirdre, glad you enjoyed it, and yes, I did think of you when I wrote it! Deirdre was a pretty strong willed and determined woman, I have a lot of admiration for her. I wrote a feminist retelling of her story from her own pov, perhaps I will share it here, if anyone is interested in that kind of thing. Hope you are well, and thanks for reading! 💕
What lovely flowers and especially it is wonderful to hear of their place in Irish culture and folklore. And how interesting to compare your native wildflowers with their North America cousins. Fireweed (same species) is native here, also. What we call meadowsweet here is Spirea alba, also in the Rosacae family -- but we do have a similiar Filipendula species here called Queen of the Prairie, which is pink. Bluebells native to Eastern US are unrelated to hyacinth, being in the borage family...but we do have wild hyacinth, which is in the Lily family and is more blue than your gorgeous bluebells that look almost purple. When I think of hyacinth-colored eyes, I think of Elizabeth Taylor, remarked upon for her "violet" eyes and a very beautiful woman indeed.
She absolutely was! Thank you so much for sharing your native wild plants here, that is exactly what I hope for! I wish Substack enabled the option to add photos to comments, that would be wonderful, so we could all share images here, but unfortunately it is not something available yet. I would love to see the differences and similarities. Thank you, Carmine 💕
Hi Finola, you're right, they are much better names, thank you, I will edit the post to include them. Incidentally, I was researching native wildflower meadows the other day and came across some posts of yours all about that, now I understand about all your wildflower insta posts... I did not realise you had rewilded a meadow! It was very inspiring to me as I am going through this process myself with my own small patch of land. 💕
Another brilliant post. (Loved the part with the foxgloves and the description of the beautiful Deirdre) 😂 Thank you - loved this post. Will be looking out for all of these wonderful plants and flowers with fresh eyes 💚💚💚☘️☘️☘️
What a treat to read about all my favourite things in one go! Herbalism, plants, myths and Ireland. And the video blew me away, as did the pictures of the bluebells. I suddenly got a wonderful memory of walking in a bluebell woods with my Irish granny and discussing their divine colour.
Thank you for your beautiful stories of living in awareness and connecting to the Earth.
Thank you, Ingrid! It's wonderful to meet like-minded people here, isn't it? What a beautiful memory to have of your Granny... walking in a bluebell wood is truly magical, and cameras never seem to quite capture their vivid colour or their magic. Thank you so much for reading, and commenting. 💕
Over the years, I adored your posts on Irish mythology and they brought me to the privilege of hiring you to be a guide for my Irish tour and meeting you. I am delighted that you are now discussing the flora of Ireland and including those myths. Your posts are always appreciated and enjoyed. I am proud to be a member of H A G.
Robin, thank you so much! I enjoyed meeting you that first time and showing you around my favourite places, and every time since, and I hope we will get to explore Ireland together again in the not too distant future! We have had a lot of fun together! 💕
I love your posts, Ali. They take me back to the earth. I learned a bit of herbalism when I wrote my last historical novel and remain interested in how plants were used as medicine - and still all.
Thank you. Noelle... it's amazing what we learn in the pursuit of telling a story... or writing a novel! It's so easy for us to get carried away by the demands of modern living, which removes us from the land and from nature. I am very concerned about climate change and the lack of action by our leaders. Instead of becoming depressed by that, I've resolved to do what I can, and that means educating myself about my local landscape, and doing what I can for nature on this little patch of land that comes with my house. I feel like I have been called back to the earth, back to wildness. 💕
Hi Terri, thank you so much! That's great to hear. My phone is full of images of wild plants, and my head is full of stories and legends... the herbalism is a new journey for me, but somehow it is all beginning to entwine and thread through my own life experiences. If I don't put it here, I'd probably explode! 😂
Yes, I read her last summer, her book had quite a profound effect on me. It was assigned reading for one of my modules at college, but it was only last year, when I reread it, probably because I had more time to engage with it, that it took on new meaning for me. She certainly made look at the world with new eyes! 💕
Being Canadian with Irish ancestry, I really appreciate your posts. I haven’t been to Ireland, but the more I read and see (That video is gorgeous!), the more I want to see it.
You have Ireland in your heart and veins! That video is gorgeous and shows the land's grandness... if that's a word (I'm having trouble finding the right words today 😆). I'm at the other end of the spectrum, showing off its humbless, which turns out to be just as awe inspiring, judging by the lovely responses I see here. Grá mór to you! 💕
Thank you so much, Mari! I've heard it said that as we age we enter a kind of second childhood, and I sometimes feel like a child wide-eyed with wonder when I encounter a new wild plant being! 😂
Ali, this is so gorgeous- I was on an Irish wildflower adventure with you and I loved every moment! I need to read it a few more times to even touch the edges of everything here. Thank you!
And so sorry for the loss of John. Sending much love your way xx
Thank you so much, Jane! John's words and wisdom touched a lot of hearts, I think.
Glad you enjoyed the Irish flower power. I'd love to take people on a tour of the hedges and verges and share these plant neighbours with them. I hope my wanderings inspire people to wander their own localities to see what plants are hiding there in plain sight! 💕
I love “going back to your roots in order to grow”!! The mightiest trees have the deepest roots and also where does a seed go in order to germinate?… it also roots deeply. This thought came to me a few days ago about how important it is to be grounded into the land! Thank you Ali! I love that we’re on the same page ish! Grá mór.
Hi Sandra, I totally agree with you, there's nothing nicer than taking off your shoes and walking barefoot, connecting with the land physically, skin to skin... being with the earth like that draws you in in other ways too, mentally, emotionally, sympathetically, consciously and unconsciously. Over the centuries humankind have put so many barriers between ourselves and the land, from socks and shoes, to carpets and concrete, to tv and computer tech. I'm slowly dismantling those barriers, and it's so... joy-inducing... do we even have a word for creating joy? I want a word like 'empowering ', but can't think of one!
Yes totally! Embodying?? I’m not sure of that one either. I know what you mean. It’s the parts of us that are completely one with nature and the land and when they connect they sing ♥️
I discovered you in, I think, 2018. It was a post about the Tuatha De Dannan and it was all I could find online at all about the Shining Ones. Thank you for sharing your discoveries! And condolences to you and other for the loss of John. xW
Hi Whitney, I know the post you mean, I think it also featured a photo of my red-headed blue eyed son as an example of what the Danann may have looked like, according to the descriptions in the legends. Thanks for sticking with me all these years! 💕
I did indeed 'seem' to disappear, you're right, but what happened was, Wordpress became too expensive for me to create visually the kind of website I wanted, I was unemployed and at home raising my family, I couldn't justify the expense. So I transferred all my work over to Wix, but in doing that, lost all my online presence. When people googled anything to do with Irish myth, I would always show up on the first page. When I moved over to Wix, I lost that, it was like starting from scratch with a brand new website and no followers, I even lost all the comments people had written, Wordpress kept those. I was gutted, but I slogged really hard to try and make the best of it. But I was very disillusioned, and then I went back to college and had no time to write. And then I got hit by perimenopause. Ugh. Everything was a mess. I decided to give it one more try on Substack, and here we are! ❤️ Substack! And have 'met' some lovely people here! 💕 In fact, writing on Substack reminds me very much of the early days of Wordpress, there is a really great community here.
I always think I'm lazy compared to other people, until I look back and realise my achievements. We don't acknowledge and celebrate them enough, do we?
No, we don't. You know I am cataloging my own work now and my gosh, I have been prolific, and not with fluff, either. It's helpful to be reminded because I lately have been wondering why I don't feel compelled toward anything currently. I reckon, just wait. It will show up and take me towards it whether I want to or not if my past work is any indication...
Sorry to hear John Wilmott died, he wrote some really interesting pieces and I can see how you connected with him.
I love this wildflower post ❤️
Thanks, lovely! Funeral was down your way, I did think of calling in on you at work and taking you for a coffee, but I had to get home for Carys. 😘
Hi Deirdre, glad you enjoyed it, and yes, I did think of you when I wrote it! Deirdre was a pretty strong willed and determined woman, I have a lot of admiration for her. I wrote a feminist retelling of her story from her own pov, perhaps I will share it here, if anyone is interested in that kind of thing. Hope you are well, and thanks for reading! 💕
What lovely flowers and especially it is wonderful to hear of their place in Irish culture and folklore. And how interesting to compare your native wildflowers with their North America cousins. Fireweed (same species) is native here, also. What we call meadowsweet here is Spirea alba, also in the Rosacae family -- but we do have a similiar Filipendula species here called Queen of the Prairie, which is pink. Bluebells native to Eastern US are unrelated to hyacinth, being in the borage family...but we do have wild hyacinth, which is in the Lily family and is more blue than your gorgeous bluebells that look almost purple. When I think of hyacinth-colored eyes, I think of Elizabeth Taylor, remarked upon for her "violet" eyes and a very beautiful woman indeed.
She absolutely was! Thank you so much for sharing your native wild plants here, that is exactly what I hope for! I wish Substack enabled the option to add photos to comments, that would be wonderful, so we could all share images here, but unfortunately it is not something available yet. I would love to see the differences and similarities. Thank you, Carmine 💕
Hi Ali - Lovely post. Foxglove is also known as Lus na mBan Sí and Méirín Púca - much better names than Lus Mór!
Hi Finola, you're right, they are much better names, thank you, I will edit the post to include them. Incidentally, I was researching native wildflower meadows the other day and came across some posts of yours all about that, now I understand about all your wildflower insta posts... I did not realise you had rewilded a meadow! It was very inspiring to me as I am going through this process myself with my own small patch of land. 💕
Another brilliant post. (Loved the part with the foxgloves and the description of the beautiful Deirdre) 😂 Thank you - loved this post. Will be looking out for all of these wonderful plants and flowers with fresh eyes 💚💚💚☘️☘️☘️
What a treat to read about all my favourite things in one go! Herbalism, plants, myths and Ireland. And the video blew me away, as did the pictures of the bluebells. I suddenly got a wonderful memory of walking in a bluebell woods with my Irish granny and discussing their divine colour.
Thank you for your beautiful stories of living in awareness and connecting to the Earth.
Thank you, Ingrid! It's wonderful to meet like-minded people here, isn't it? What a beautiful memory to have of your Granny... walking in a bluebell wood is truly magical, and cameras never seem to quite capture their vivid colour or their magic. Thank you so much for reading, and commenting. 💕
Ali, this is so so so beautiful! I loved reading it and am excited on the direction you are headed with future sharing. All sounds wonderful. x
Thank you, Kelly! It's lovely to hear that. 💕
Over the years, I adored your posts on Irish mythology and they brought me to the privilege of hiring you to be a guide for my Irish tour and meeting you. I am delighted that you are now discussing the flora of Ireland and including those myths. Your posts are always appreciated and enjoyed. I am proud to be a member of H A G.
Robin, thank you so much! I enjoyed meeting you that first time and showing you around my favourite places, and every time since, and I hope we will get to explore Ireland together again in the not too distant future! We have had a lot of fun together! 💕
I love your posts, Ali. They take me back to the earth. I learned a bit of herbalism when I wrote my last historical novel and remain interested in how plants were used as medicine - and still all.
Thank you. Noelle... it's amazing what we learn in the pursuit of telling a story... or writing a novel! It's so easy for us to get carried away by the demands of modern living, which removes us from the land and from nature. I am very concerned about climate change and the lack of action by our leaders. Instead of becoming depressed by that, I've resolved to do what I can, and that means educating myself about my local landscape, and doing what I can for nature on this little patch of land that comes with my house. I feel like I have been called back to the earth, back to wildness. 💕
You're doing a great job of it!
Thank you 😍
Thanks for these beautiful flower stories. I really like the way you weave myths, herbalism and images together into a story about living and growing.
Hi Terri, thank you so much! That's great to hear. My phone is full of images of wild plants, and my head is full of stories and legends... the herbalism is a new journey for me, but somehow it is all beginning to entwine and thread through my own life experiences. If I don't put it here, I'd probably explode! 😂
I can relate to that! Have you read Robin Wall Kimmerer? She weave science, Indogenous knowledge and stories together too
Yes, I read her last summer, her book had quite a profound effect on me. It was assigned reading for one of my modules at college, but it was only last year, when I reread it, probably because I had more time to engage with it, that it took on new meaning for me. She certainly made look at the world with new eyes! 💕
Being Canadian with Irish ancestry, I really appreciate your posts. I haven’t been to Ireland, but the more I read and see (That video is gorgeous!), the more I want to see it.
Thank you for educating me:)
You have Ireland in your heart and veins! That video is gorgeous and shows the land's grandness... if that's a word (I'm having trouble finding the right words today 😆). I'm at the other end of the spectrum, showing off its humbless, which turns out to be just as awe inspiring, judging by the lovely responses I see here. Grá mór to you! 💕
Thank you as always Ali for the images the words the love and wonder you spread. 🌹🌻🌞🌦️🌻
Thank you so much, Mari! I've heard it said that as we age we enter a kind of second childhood, and I sometimes feel like a child wide-eyed with wonder when I encounter a new wild plant being! 😂
Ali, this is so gorgeous- I was on an Irish wildflower adventure with you and I loved every moment! I need to read it a few more times to even touch the edges of everything here. Thank you!
And so sorry for the loss of John. Sending much love your way xx
Thank you so much, Jane! John's words and wisdom touched a lot of hearts, I think.
Glad you enjoyed the Irish flower power. I'd love to take people on a tour of the hedges and verges and share these plant neighbours with them. I hope my wanderings inspire people to wander their own localities to see what plants are hiding there in plain sight! 💕
I love “going back to your roots in order to grow”!! The mightiest trees have the deepest roots and also where does a seed go in order to germinate?… it also roots deeply. This thought came to me a few days ago about how important it is to be grounded into the land! Thank you Ali! I love that we’re on the same page ish! Grá mór.
Hi Sandra, I totally agree with you, there's nothing nicer than taking off your shoes and walking barefoot, connecting with the land physically, skin to skin... being with the earth like that draws you in in other ways too, mentally, emotionally, sympathetically, consciously and unconsciously. Over the centuries humankind have put so many barriers between ourselves and the land, from socks and shoes, to carpets and concrete, to tv and computer tech. I'm slowly dismantling those barriers, and it's so... joy-inducing... do we even have a word for creating joy? I want a word like 'empowering ', but can't think of one!
Yes totally! Embodying?? I’m not sure of that one either. I know what you mean. It’s the parts of us that are completely one with nature and the land and when they connect they sing ♥️
Oooohhh... I like that idea, 'they sing', yes! 💕
I discovered you in, I think, 2018. It was a post about the Tuatha De Dannan and it was all I could find online at all about the Shining Ones. Thank you for sharing your discoveries! And condolences to you and other for the loss of John. xW
Hi Whitney, I know the post you mean, I think it also featured a photo of my red-headed blue eyed son as an example of what the Danann may have looked like, according to the descriptions in the legends. Thanks for sticking with me all these years! 💕
For a while you seemed to disappear. I was so happy when I found you again on Substack!
I did indeed 'seem' to disappear, you're right, but what happened was, Wordpress became too expensive for me to create visually the kind of website I wanted, I was unemployed and at home raising my family, I couldn't justify the expense. So I transferred all my work over to Wix, but in doing that, lost all my online presence. When people googled anything to do with Irish myth, I would always show up on the first page. When I moved over to Wix, I lost that, it was like starting from scratch with a brand new website and no followers, I even lost all the comments people had written, Wordpress kept those. I was gutted, but I slogged really hard to try and make the best of it. But I was very disillusioned, and then I went back to college and had no time to write. And then I got hit by perimenopause. Ugh. Everything was a mess. I decided to give it one more try on Substack, and here we are! ❤️ Substack! And have 'met' some lovely people here! 💕 In fact, writing on Substack reminds me very much of the early days of Wordpress, there is a really great community here.
It is an excellent tool for connecting without the agro. You got a lot done in your absence from the Internet. x
I always think I'm lazy compared to other people, until I look back and realise my achievements. We don't acknowledge and celebrate them enough, do we?
No, we don't. You know I am cataloging my own work now and my gosh, I have been prolific, and not with fluff, either. It's helpful to be reminded because I lately have been wondering why I don't feel compelled toward anything currently. I reckon, just wait. It will show up and take me towards it whether I want to or not if my past work is any indication...