To Spread Her Blessings

From each ancient place in Ireland
where we walked with ancestors,
where we traveled to priestess the land,
from each piece of earth
where we received from Her,
Rose has gathered bounty,
and dried it carefully with love.

Little limbs with lichen,
a delicate ball of moss,
a berry and a blossom
still radiating red,
a seedpod offering its perfect cup.
Stems, some like thread,
some the sturdy sisters.
Seeds, one winged!
Spears of grass curling into secret runes.
Leaves of oak from holy sites.
Wildflowers, miniature branching blossoms
somehow saved intact.
A bit of pine, a dandelion.
A blessed dark ribbon of seaweed.

Stems and seed, leaves and flowers,
each shape, each texture its own,
all of it dwelling together.
making a gathered family,
Rose has given each of us
a paper pouch of whispered magic
from all these sacred sites:

The Grange Stone Circle and dear Lough Gur,
Brigit’s Well, the first of three.
The Hag of Beara Stone,
the Ogham Stone,
and the Tuatha de Danann city of Shrone
shining at the foot of the mountain Paps.
A waterfall in a Fairy Forest.
Beal Boru, and the Brigidine Center.
Bridget’s Ancient Fire Temple.
Grainne’s Rath at Tara, and
the ancient Tlachtga burial Stone.
Circles for Maiden for Mother for Crone,
the Court Cairn of Creevykeel.
And at the end, the secret Glen.

Bits of all these places
nestle in the paper pouch from Rose.
Gifts from all these pilgrim places
bring Her into our homes
and tell us never to forget.
Gifts from all these holy sites
call for us, call soft for us,
to spread Her Blessings far and wide.
©Susa Silvermarie 2023