Hungry Brigit

This post on is much more personal than I normally get here. In it I talk about the background to the poem "Hungry" that I published a few weeks back in Stone on the Belly. It does refer to hardships, without going into great detail, but it could be triggering for some.

 I published one of my poems on Stone on the Belly earlier this month, “Hungry.” It’s different from most of my poems about Brigit, saint or goddess or both, in touching on an aspect of her that doesn’t figure much in our musings about her. It bears marks that are more often attributed to The Morrigan, or another more martial deity. A saint who oversaw the army of Leinster in battle, who might mysteriously abandon her devotees and require appeasement in the form of a struggling bird buried alive at a place of magical power. A smith goddess whose implements are as likely, perhaps more so, to be tools of battle as cauldrons of plenty. 

Brigit’s influence on my life has been one of tremendous healing, but it hasn’t come in the form of ease and comfort in a mother’s arms. It has come as an unyielding companion in battle, a friend in times of tending wounds. Brigit surrounded me as I received blow after blow to my person, my dreams, my sense of being in this world. She remained as I tried to form myself again.

 

I couldn’t feel her, most of the time, or see her standing over me. Yet I turned to her, nevertheless. Again and again, over decades, I built on the relationship I had with her and with her followers – with myself – and from my current vantage point, standing on this threshold place — a hilltop overlooking a wild sea — I see the shape of her in my own unfolding life.

 

In her company, I have strengthened, purified my understanding, let go, let go, and then let go still more of all I thought I was and could be, or have, in my life. My suffering, like the suffering of that poor smothered bird or the folk who killed her in their fear, has been and will be unavoidable. But in Brigit’s company, and in your company, I have gradually learned to hold my own in the churning seas, to retreat from battlefields or to fight when needs be, in ways that are not so cruel to myself or my opponent. I have been ashamed of my actions, my words, when I let them fly untempered. I have been landless, cowless, without even the Fianna, it seemed, but in fact, there have always been others. Friends, family at times, sisters and brothers on Brigit’s path. We have been bruised yet continuing, rising up again and again, learning from our poorly moulded states, being transformed not once, but a thousand thousand times.

 

I raise my hands in gratitude to Brigit and to you, my companions in this sometimes treacherous, sometimes blissful, always precious life.

Original Poem: “Hungry” by Mael Brigde on Stone on the Belly.

Image: "A honest look at the pain of mental illness." Photo by Kat J on Unsplash.

Songs of the Oystercatcher by Heather Upfield

I have added a new page (the first "page") to my Brigit poetry blog, Stone on the Belly: a series of poems written by Heather Upfield, honouring Brihde through the seasons.

To see and download Songs of the Oystercatcher, please click here.

"Sun Among Stars: Poems & Prayers to Brigit of Ireland" by Mael Brigde.

It will be a while yet before it is out, but I have a book of my Brigit poems in preparation.

If you would like to know when it becomes available, feel free to private message on Facebook or leave a comment here with your email address (I will delete the comment as soon as I get your email address, to protect your privacy). I will let you know when the time of publication comes.

To read some of my Brigit poems, along with those of other writers, please have a look at Stone on the Belly. Blessings of Brigit on you! Have a wonderful Imbolc (so very soon).

Image: "A hand holding a pen on the statue of Isaiah at Piazza Spagna in Rome" by gnuckx (Flickr: Roma Italy - Creative Commons by gnuckx) [Public domain or CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

Poem for Imbolc: "By Brigit's Day"

Please visit Stone on the Belly--the Brigit poetry blog--for this and other poems and prayers to and about Brigit and her cultus.

Stone on the Belly: A Brigit Poetry Blog

It is probably time to fess up and tell you that I have begun a new blog for my Brigit poetry—Stone on the Belly. I have written a heck of a lot of these things, and am slowly publishing a few of them online.

Some focus on the goddess(es), some the saint, some both. Others reflect my relationship to Brigit over time. I don't try to make all of her lore and traditions into a single unified whole, but let each poem, each tradition, stand on its own foundations.

Below is the introduction to Stone on the Belly. You are welcome to come by and dip in, or sign up for alerts.

Writing Brigit

Many years ago I wrote my first Brigit prayer. Poem. Blessing...

I have been writing them ever since, but seldom share them. Some of them are carefully crafted, some simple and straight from the heart.

I also read the prayers and blessings of my sisters in the Daughters of the Flame and other Brigit-loving women and men, and they fill me with surprise and delight.

I would like to share some of these poems with you.

Following is the one that signs off each of my emails, a reminder to me to guide my words and intentions with care when I write to anyone. It's as good a place to start as any.

Flame Offering

In the name of the three Brigits

I light the candle of my heart

May I offer it to everyone

gentle and steady

warm and bright