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- Labyrinths
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- Christmas Customs
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- Hiawatha
- Lughnasa
- The Hero’s Journey
- Boudicca: Warrior Queen
- Mermaids: A Fishy Tale
- Saint Valentine’s Day
- Saint Brigid’s Fire
- The Story of Writing
- New Year’s Resolutions
- Is Santa Claus Real?
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Category Archives: History
Labyrinths
Labyrinths are sometimes seen as a metaphor for confusion. Theseus chases the Minotaur through a labyrinth; Jung talks of the labyrinth of the unconscious mind. Actually these are examples of mazes, not labyrinths. A maze is a web of tracks … Continue reading
Posted in History, LifeWorks, Mythology, Religion, Spirituality
Tagged cathedral, Chartres, Christian, labyrinth, Labyrinth London Underground, labyrinths, maze
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Plough Monday
Plough Monday traditionally marked the end of the midwinter festivities. The Twelve Days of Christmas were over: on the Monday after Epiphany, it was time to return to work. But in medieval England, it was an excuse for agricultural labourers … Continue reading
Posted in History, Mythology
Tagged Epiphany, molly dancers, molly dances, Plough Monday, traditional customs
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Christmas Customs
Have you written your Christmas cards? Made some mince pies? Put up the tree? On these cold winter days, we need a festival to feel good about life. Our midwinter customs go back a long way…. Christmas really began in … Continue reading
Hallowe’en
Hallow’s Eve: the night before All Saint’s Day, when dark things walk the earth. Good folk need protective rituals to keep their houses safe from harm. People may call it Fright Night, but actually the things associated with Hallowe’en are … Continue reading
Posted in History, Mythology
Tagged All Hallow's Eve, bonfire, Celtic, customs, Halloween, Mischief Night, pictures, protective, pumpkin, Samhain, traditions, witch, witches
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Hiawatha
In the old days, the braves were always fighting. Summertime, and the living was easy: what else was there for a boy to do? Quite a lot, actually. The Iroquois tribes who controlled lands along the Atlantic coast were renowned … Continue reading
Posted in History, LifeWorks, Mythology
Tagged Deganawida, Haio Hwa Tha, Haudenonsaunee, Hiawatha, historical character, Iroquois, League of the Longhouse, Longfellow, Longhouse, Mohawk
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Boudicca: Warrior Queen
Boudicca was a striking woman: tall enough to look a warrior in the eyes, with russet hair tumbling to her waist and a voice that rang out like a bugle call. She was married to the king of the Iceni, … Continue reading
Mermaids: A Fishy Tale
Do you believe in mermaids? A beautiful woman with a fish’s tail. Sometimes they come out of the water and sit on the rocks combing their hair. Sweet-voiced and slippery, they are hard to catch. In Shakespeare’s time, the term … Continue reading
Posted in History, LifeWorks, Mythology
Tagged April, April Fool's Day, Avril, baby mermaid, fish, Jane Bailey Bain, LifeWorks, mermaid, mermaids, poisson, poisson d'Avril, Shakespeare
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Saint Valentine’s Day
Valentine was purportedly a priest who lived in Rome around 270AD. The Emperor Claudius II issued a decree forbidding military recruits to marry, in the belief that single men make better soldiers. As a Christian, Valentine believed marriage was a … Continue reading
Posted in History, Mythology, Religion
Tagged Leap Year, propose, Saint Bridget, Saint Brigid, Saint Patrick, Saint Valentine, St Bridget, St Brigid, St Patrick, St Valentine, Valentine, Valentine's Day
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Saint Brigid’s Fire
Brigid was a slip of a girl with a mass of red-gold curls. It drove the nuns wild, that hair, for however much they combed it sprang back into a cloud. The girl ran wild too, although she had such … Continue reading
The Story of Writing
Ever since the first men sat around their camp fire, people have wondered about the meaning of life. Who am I? Why am I here? One of the ways we answer these questions is to tell stories… ‘LifeWorks’ In the … Continue reading
Posted in History, LifeWorks, Writing
Tagged cuneiform, Jane Bailey, Jane Bailey Bain, Jane Bain, LifeWorks, Oxford, printing press, publishing, Queen's, stone age, Sumerian, writing
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New Year’s Resolutions
What are your New Year’s resolutions? Not the ambitious ones you announce, slightly tipsy, when someone asks you at a party on the big night; nor the virtuous ones you make, feeling slightly wistful, when the next day dawns and finds … Continue reading
Posted in History, Life, Mythology
Tagged bucket list, doors, doorways, Jane Bailey Bain, January, Janus, LifeWorks, memory palace, mythology, New Year, resolutions, Roman
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Is Santa Claus Real?
St Nicholas is busy this month. In northern Europe, children put their shoes neatly by the door on 6th December. If they have been good this year, St Nicholas fills them with sweets and toys; if not, they will find … Continue reading
Posted in History, Religion
Tagged Father Christmas, Good St Nick, history, Is Santa Claus real?, real, religion, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nicholas Day, Santa Claus, St Nicholas, St Nicholas Day, true
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Thanksgiving Traditions
Thanksgiving is a time of praise and plenty. Surrounded by friends and family, we celebrate the fruits of the past year. But what did this feast mean to the first inhabitants of America? The Pilgrim Fathers landed at Cape Cod … Continue reading
Posted in History, LifeWorks
Tagged Communion, Eucharist, First Thanksgiving, Jane Bailey Bain, LifeWorks, Maize, Massasoit, Mayflower, Pilgrim Fathers, Squanto, Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving traditions, Wampanoag
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