Cronnie Wisdom

Crone is "a phase in which you can be more authentic, more capable of making a difference in your family and in the greater world. Life gives you experience, and when you draw from it, that's true wisdom. By the time a woman is in her crone years, she is in an amazing position to be an influence. To change things for the better, to bring what she knows into a situation, to be able to say, 'Enough is enough.' You don't have to just go along with things, which is often a part of the middle years. You're often something of a loose cannon."
Jean Shinoda Bolen


Monday, December 14, 2020

Santa is Gender-Neutral!

In this month's podcast, it's all about Santa: the folklore, story, and the greater archetype. I posit the question of whether Santa can be gender-neutral. We'll explore an adapted version of the poem "A Visit from Santa Claus" written by Clement Clarke Moore.  Think about it for just a moment.  Santa as the wise crone?  Why not?


Sunday, November 15, 2020

Book Review - "The Republic of Birds" by Jessica Miller

 


This book is simply charming.  It’s as comfortable and enjoyable as a cup of cocoa on a snowy day. The story takes place in a fantasy tsarist Russia.  The tsarina is at war with the Republic of Birds, a magical race that once graced the land.  At least that is, before the firebird’s egg appeared.  The story tells of Olga’s hero’s journey, one filled with bravery and even a rescue.  It has many delightful references to Russian folklore and culture including maps and yagas, huts with chicken legs, and Russian ballet.  The characters are all well-defined.  This is especially true of the older women who instead of witches become wise (sometimes magical), and glorious crones. When the tale was finally over, this reader longed for a sequel to discover just what Olga did next!

Published by Amulet Books, 2020.

Saturday, October 31, 2020

Is the Witchy Crone Born or Made?

 



It’s Halloween.  The witching time of year.  The witch is a character, an archetype, and an epitaph. Starting in the middle ages as a healer, she later became associated with the devil; and either burned at the stake or hung, when identified. Women outliers were most often accused.  Single women, widows, and other women on the margins of society were especially targeted.

Over time, the witch became a universal archetype, closely associated with the crone. Both are portrayed as old and ugly.  Both are clever and, at times, cunning.  What distinguishes them is not magic-making or flying on broomsticks, but on the crone’s desire to serve as a mentor or guide for those who are found worthy.  These are the young heroes-in-training, usually, orphans lost in a world in which they have no value.  The line between the witch and the crone is rarely clear.

Yet a question remains.  Is the witch born or made? Is she the product of trauma, a wrong that remained un-righted, a solitary weakness in character, or was her fate destined?  It’s the back story we never hear of a witch woman we never truly know.  If that story was told perhaps our view of her would change.  Perhaps we would see her in a new light, a light of understanding and compassion.  And in doing so perhaps women today could also stop judging themselves against a single measure of perfection – the archetype of the princess.  The princess is the antithesis of the witch.  She is meek, well mannered, and beautiful.  She never is “too smart,” or “too gifted.”  She knows her place and only rarely moves beyond her assigned role.   

The witch in folk tales, however, is no sissy.  Smart and skilled, she causes chaos, places curses, and sometimes eats small children for dinner. She is no one to be crossed.  Accordingly, many women today would do just about anything to avoid being called her name (or some variation thereof!).  But is the witch beyond redemption?  Is she always the evil antagonist or is there a reason for her madness?

The poem that follows is one of these backstories.  It’s the story of a woman who became a witch only after she lost her love.  Many years later, as an old, old, woman (perhaps even a crone), she crafts a spell to begin again.

Magick Spell for Lost Love

 

“Double, double toil and trouble….”

I cast this spell in the darkest night; the moon is full, owl, and wolf share my plight.

“Fire burn and caldron bubble…”

The words I speak brand my heart, I set my intention and release the dark arts,

“Fillet of a fenny snake…”

for an incantation truly meant to find lost love and heal laments.

“In the caldron boil and bake…”

No visage reflects on my mirror shard, nor fortune fated on a Tarot card.

Eye of Newt and toe of frog…”

My power lost, so freely given; in spurts and sputters, and without reason.

“Wool of bat and tongue of dog...”

“Nose too long and hair too straight,” poisoned thoughts that suffocate.

“Adder’s fork and blind-worm’s sting…”

Potions of hibiscus and rose hips fail against the sin of self-betrayal.

“Lizard’s leg and howlet’s wing…”

The raven gives its warning cry, as I mark a pentagram in the sky.

“For a charm of powerful trouble…”

My skill grew less, my anger rose, as I recalled my troubled woes.

Like a hell-broth boil and bubble…”

No one can put me in my place, say I am less, or make me wait.

“Double, double toil and trouble…”

Send me to trial, or burn at stake, release me from this awful hate,

Fire burn and caldron bubble…”

that strips my skill and leaves me bare, forget and forgive, not ensnare.

“Cool it with a baboon’s blood…” (And let me remember how to love.)

My power comes from deep within, this magick’s in my very skin.

“Then the charm is firm and good…”

Love is stronger than the night, it gives me strength, so I take flight.

 


Friday, October 23, 2020

Book Review - "Twelve: Poems Inspired by the Grimm Fairy Tale" by Andrea Blyth

 

 

Blyth crafted her small book around the Grimm folktale of the “Twelve Dancing Princesses” (also known as “The Shoes that Were Danced to Pieces”).  It’s the tale of 12 sisters who sneak off at night to dance with the fairies. Each day they return with their shoes worn out.  The King imprisons them and proclaims that any man who can uncover the mystery can marry one of his daughters. If the suitor fails, then it’s off with the head!  The sisters drug the men so they can’t be followed. But a soldier (with help from an old woman) finally solves the puzzle.  The story ends with him marrying the older sister. 

This is where Blyth’s prose poems pick up the tale. For each sister she creatively envisions her life after the bliss and intoxication of the otherworld.  She weaves stories of rage and guilt, addiction, and mayhem. Ultimately, it is the tale of women who experienced freedom only to be later confined as the property of men. (And yes, there is a feminist cast to her prose.)  I’m sure each reader will have a favorite sister with her over the top solution to living a life no longer of her own choosing.

Each story is filled with poetic ideas, and beautiful imagery. Each story answers the question of what happens after “happily ever after.” Best of all, Blyth includes “Author’s Notes” that discuss her thoughts on the folktale and how she came to her retelling.

 

Friday, October 16, 2020

Book Review - "Tales of the Night Sky: Revealing the Mythologies and Folklore behind the Constellations" by Robin Kerrod

 At the "Wise Crone Cottage" blog and podcast, I focus on stories from the oral tradition, both folktales and mythologies. It is my goal to share these stories so they won't be forgotten.  In support of this goal, I've started writing book reviews of new works on these topics. You can find them on "Goodreads" and "NetGalley."  They will also be posted here.

 Tales of the Night Sky by Robin Kerod


Tales of the Night Sky: Revealing the Mythologies and Folklore behind the Constellations by Robin Kerrod, (London: Quarto Pub., 2020), is a fun mix of science and folklore.  Filled with beautiful illustrations, this book also includes an 18” x 24” constellation wall map.  Each section discusses a specific element of cosmology – “The Universe,” “Patterns in the Sky,” “Around the Constellations,” and “Wandering Stars” (the ancient Greek term for planets).  Written for a young audience, each entry focuses on a specific constellation or planet discussing its history, science, mythology, and folklore (including astrological interpretations).  History and science from early thought (in which the sun rotates around the earth) to Copernicus is included; and ancient stories from Greek, Roman and Egyptian mythology provided.  All topics are addressed in a clear and simple format often on only a single page. For example, the entry on the Constellation of Cancer includes several stories from Greek mythology in which the crab fights with Hercules during his battle with a hydra.  It also provides early folklore on the “swarm of stars,” found on the center star, Praesepe, which is called the “beehive cluster.” Some entries also provide a brief astronomy discussion. The associated illustration shows the star chart and the ancient depiction of the Cancer constellation.  A glossary is included. For both teachers and storytellers, this book contains the perfect blend of science, history, and folklore to create an entertaining and educational story or introductory lesson plan.

Sunday, September 27, 2020

Ruth Bader Ginsberg – Teller and Keeper of the Story

 


Sometimes our story lives within us.  Sometimes it is so close to our very core that as a people we just can’t untangle it from reality. We continue to see out of an old pair of glasses, one which no longer enhances our sight.  Yet no matter how distorted this vision, we trust in what we see.  Such is the nature of a country’s story. I began to think about these stories and its tellers at the death of Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a very, wise, old woman.

The American story is fairly young as stories go.  It is part folktale (think George Washington and his cherry tree) and part myth (the sacred treatment of a flag and the fervent respect for a constitution).  But the story lives mostly as a legend – a tale with a kernel of truth that has grown much bigger than life.  And there is not just one story but many, many stories – different variants of that single story.   At least, that’s true in the United States where the diversity of experience portrays vastly different narratives. Nevertheless, a teller steps forth for each story.  Perhaps it’s a Martin Luther King, Jr., Susan B. Anthony, Wilma Mankiller or Cesar Chavez. It can be anyone who holds at least a part of the story in her heart and has a great need to tell it.

Megan McKenna writes of such stories and their tellers in Keepers of the Story.

In every culture, in every geographical place, among every people there are individuals who are entrusted with the words that belong to that place and group.  They hold the heritage, the experiences, and the stories that express who they are and how they stand in the universe. These are the keepers of the Story. Their lives are dedicated to preserving, to keeping true, to guarding and protecting what is not theirs alone, but what has been given into their care by others.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg is one of these tellers and an icon for many.  She keeps the heritage and experience of American women throughout history. “I ask no favor for my sex, all I ask of our brethren is that they take their feet off our necks,” she once said. McKenna explains the urgency in these teller’s work.

It is a vocation, a calling, a responsibility, and a work that defines them in relation to their people and in relation to other groups and their stores.  They live on the words, but they never make their living from the words.  The tales tell them.  The stories use their flesh, their voices and minds, to remain alive and to keep the people alive.  The keepers are given words and are held in sway and bondage by the lifelines of hope, suffering, exaltation, births and deaths, resurrections, and visions: by the Story. (McKenna)

But what is the American story or perhaps are the American stories?  One version is the tale of the underdog.  The story of a people who overthrew a King and fought an army for religious freedom and independence.  It’s a tale of a document that promised a new way of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It granted great freedoms of speech, the press, religion, to assemble and petition the government. The document promised equality (at least for men) and opportunity.  It’s a tale of our founding fathers and those rugged individualists, pioneer settlers, who had grit and optimism.  People who were willing to risk and fail and pull themselves up by their bootstraps.  The story fueled a dream that anyone could achieve a better life here if only they tried and worked hard enough.

That’s the legend anyway.  One that struggles against the other version.  This story is a tale of suffering and loss.  It’s the story of wealth achieved on the backs of others. It is a country ruled by those of white, European ancestry – entitled, aristocratic, imperialistic.  These founding fathers moved to American shores feeling justified in colonizing it. They believed in their own superiority and in the right to take the land of indigenous people and enslave others.  They’ve held the power and amassed the wealth for hundreds of years. This story portrays an America in shambles.

Stories are a matter of the teller’s perception sometimes more than a reflection of truth.   It’s the keeper of the story who crafts the narrative and captures our attention.  It can encourage and motivate or demoralize and anger. We see that time and again in our divisive world today.

“There are many keepers,” McKenna writes, “…but there is only the one Story. It is a single question in myriad forms.  It is a universal pronouncement in expressions beyond numbering.  It is a cry sounded in every generation, every place, and in each human heart that wonders, asks, demand, whispers, shouts, chants, begs, prays and repeats again and again and again. Who are we?  Who am I? Who are you? Who art Thou?  Are we all one? What is truth?  Are we true? Is the end in the beginning?  Where are we now?  What is it that sings among the stars and in our blood and in the empty places of the world and in the wolves howling in the human heart?”

Those are the big questions, existential questions. Each teller and story keeper holds the answer in their words.  Each has a different wolf howling within a human heart. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s story reflects the experience of a people oppressed.  It spoke of a history of bondage, and the suffering of slavery not addressed. Yet his answer to the question “Who are we” may not be that different from Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s.  She found her story in the law - especially as that law addressed the rights of women and minorities.  She remembered the making of our constitution when Abigail Adams asked her husband John to “Remember the ladies.”  He laughed at her absurdity and women continued to be the property of their husbands and fathers. She knew the struggle for the vote was a lengthy and difficult one, a victory which took decades of agitation and protest. When the Equal Rights Amendment didn’t pass, she knew women continued to struggle with inequality of pay, opportunity and legal protections.  Ginsburg didn’t give up.  She held fast to her story and worked long and hard to find equality “the long way round.” This was her story:  one she spoke, shared, and embodied.

We see how a country’s story shifts with the teller.  Our president’s vision of America is very different from mine and dismissive of Ginsburg’s dream of equality for all. But with all these story variations, is there one common vision remaining of America or have all these stories splintered? I contend that the best tellers share a collective story.  They can persuade and help us see through a new lens. Our perspective shifts and our vision becomes clear. These tellers can motivate us to become our best selves and strive as a country to be better and something more. What is the one story we wish to tell as a country? How can we craft a tale that inspires and motivates us all?

This is the Story, the only Story there is to tell, to refashion and tell again. It is the only Story there is to listen to and discuss and share with others, to pass on to our children and to use as an introduction to other nations, religions, peoples, cultures.  (McKenna)

Ruth Bader Ginsburg held tight to a story, a version of America that saw our violent and oppressive past, yet bridged that truth with the possibility of something more. It’s a potential for people to grow and progress - to see the errors of the past and make amends. She knew the nature of oppression, injustice and inequity.  She spoke of it in her dissents. She worked tirelessly for a country and its people, always hoping, always holding on to the belief that wrongs can still be righted, equity can exist, and reparations be made. It was the one story she told time and again:  a vision that law can still perhaps triumph over tyranny.

In the speaking we find our voice, we remember echoes and take heed of all that converges on us in blessings and blunders.  In the hearing we are sounded, tuned and drawn into the universe – the one poem, the one verse, the one harmony, the one Holiness. (McKenna)

Ginsburg was a wise crone if ever one existed.  She was a force to be reckoned with to her dying day and certainly not a grannie in a rocking chair.  Should anyone ever tell you that you are “too old” to be concerned about issues of social justice, remember Ruth.  Her legacy of devotion and truth should be our call to action.  Our rallying cry becomes, “Once more, dear Ruth, unto the brink!” as we make our way to Washington.

The mystery of the one Story is forever giving birth to expression, to transformation and transfiguration and redemption as we live, endure, and die.  Even if the essence of the Story is wrenched from us or twisted, broken or lost, there is a fervent belief among the keepers that killing the teller only gives the Story more meaning, power and possibility. (McKenna)

Although Ginsburg no long walks among us, her story can live on. We can embody it ourselves and share it with our daughters, sons and our grandchildren.  It is the generative task of the crone to be the keeper of the stories and to share them for the benefit of others.  This is a story still without an ending, that needs telling and retelling.  “I would like my granddaughter when she picks up the Constitution,” Ginsburg writes, “to see that notion – that women and men are persons of equal stature – I’d like them to see that is a basic principle of our society.”

The real issue is: Do you serve?  Do you obey?  Does the Story seize hold of your flesh and tell you?  Are you, are we, coming true?  Do you believe the words that have been given to us?  Do we stake our life on the words?  Do the words set free and loose compassion and hope for the world?... What word are we in the Story?  What will be told of us when we have become the ground of “once upon a time”? (McKenna)

The wise crone, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, leave us with one final message. “Fight for the things you care about but do it in a way that leads others to join you.”  Don’t let her story die, become a keeper of the tale and share it in your own way!

 

McKenna, Megan, Keepers of the Story: Oral Traditions in Religion,  New York: Church Publishing, 1997.