Departure Day!

It's the 23rd! I'm leaving! I'm actually going! At 9:00 this evening, I will board a plane bound for England and adventure; I feel like I stepped into a Pirates of the Caribbean movie.

Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!

Power

One of the reasons I am going to England (in 13 days!) is to tap into my own power and resiliance as a person and as a woman. Recently, I came across this video and was reminded how very powerful women can be when they sing.

MeNaiset is a Finnish folk group whose songs are based on Finno-Ugric traditions, melodies, and language. It's quite startling for someone who has never heard this style of music before; many of the singing techniques used in FinnoUgric folk songs are related to breath (like Inuit throat-singing), and mimicking animal calls and tones. I don't know what the lyrics for this song are, but from an outsider's point of view, it reminds me of Ojibway drum circles, where tones are used instead of words to convey the message. Every time I watch it, I am left with a feeling of the strength and power of women. What do you think?

It is an old video, and I'd like to share before it goes missing.

ETA-I have since been informed that the lyrics for this song are rather frivolous, but my point still stands. The topic of the song notwithstanding, it still sounds powerful.

The Reason For England

I must down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,

And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,

And a grey mist on the sea's face, and a grey dawn breaking.

I must down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide

Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;

And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,

And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,

To the gull's way and the whale's way where the wind's like a whetted knife,

And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover

And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

By John Masefield (1878-1967)