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went to miami to recover father sotirios. and made some new friends.

these animals... they are wise. I recruited them to avenge my dear brother. I was then escorted out of the sea world.

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'Virgin Mary' by Mikhail Nesterov

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Well I finally tried making varenyky/pierogi after posting about it here a few years ago. Helen Rennie, Olia Hercules and Zuza Zak's recipes and tips have been a great help! Though nothing is as insightful as actually doing the thing. And I learned a lot this morning! Shaping, the amount of blueberries that I could stuff into the dough before it tears, the amount of time they need to boil. How things feel, sound, taste when cooking it. I am- for a first time making them myself -very happy!

Though I did have to use frozen blueberries. And yes. Helen Rennie was right. Not the best, but work if you really want to have blueberry varenyky.

- Toverij & Spokerij

#toverij & spokerij #olia hercules #Helen Rennie #Zuza Zak #varenyky #pierogi #homebaker

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Fluweelengrot (Velvet cave) in Valkenburg, the Netherlands 

Labyrinth by mining Marl was mined from the cave by block breakers for use as a building stone in the construction of edifices like Valkenburg Castle. The result of this marlstone mining is an extensive labyrinth of old and rugged passageways.

Secret passageways In times of siege, the secret passageways, which were only discovered in 1937, allowed the knights and their footmen to escape the castle and attack the enemy from behind or secretly bring supplies in. One legend tells of the Brabanders (natives of Brabant) who, laying siege to Valkenburg, could not understand why celebrations were still being held inside the castle walls even after a long period of siege. Little did they know that the troops inside were being supplied via the secret passageways… from Brabant, where the siege armies would soon discover that their lands had been plundered in their absence! 

Shelter During the Second World War, the Velvet Cave served as a shelter for the residents of Valkenburg. In September 1944, after six days of heavy fighting, Valkenburg was liberated by the Americans. Roughly 600 locals stayed inside the Velvet Cave during these days. The Velvet Cave also served as a field hospital for the American soldiers. Following liberation, several American soldiers visited the Velvet Cave during their non-duty hours.

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Hestia commission for @scarlet-gryphon!

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Staff Pick of the Week

My name is Elizabeth Voorhorst, and I am a new writing intern for Special Collections this semester. It is a pleasure to share this space, as I am excited to delve into the vast sea of books that Special Collections makes a home for.

I am an English major, with a focus on creative writing. Because of this, my time spent in Special Collections will be focused predominantly on fairy tales and folklore, perhaps dipping into mythology when curiosity and inspiration strikes hardest.

For this week, I wanted to focus on black creators and their works for Black History Month. Because my pride and passion is folklore and fairy tales, I thought it would be fun to take a look at what we have in our collection and share it with you!

Retellings are always enjoyable, as you get to see the way writers recreate and offer their own flare and heritage to the story. One such story is The Girl Who Spun Gold, a retelling of the German classic fairy tale Rumpelstiltskin. This retelling was written by Virginia Hamilton (1932-2002) and illustrated by Leo Dillon (1933-2012) and Diane Dillon (1933- ).The book was published 1n 2000 by Blue Sky Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.

The story is about a West Indian girl named Quashiba, whose mother lies to Big King that she is able to spin golden thread. The King takes Quashiba as his queen, expecting her to fill whole rooms with golden fabrics and finery, which of course she would be unable to do. However, she meets a creature who offers to help, but demands that in three days she must guess his name correctly or be bound to him forever.

Quashiba is now able to fulfill the King’s continuous demands, but is unable to guess the name of her helper, until the King reveals to her that he ran across a strange creature in the woods who was dancing and singing a song that included his name, Lit’mahn Bittyun. So, on the final night, after the room is filled with fabrics and wondrous goods, Quashiba plays dumb for the first two guesses, and on the last guess she gives him his full name and he explodes into a confetti of golden specks. The King repents his greed, but only after three years and a day does Quashiba reconcile with him.

The absolutely stunning illustrations for The Girl Who Spun Gold were made using a four-color process with gold as a fifth color. The Dillons comment on the painting process, stating:

Knowing the difficulty of painting with metallic paint as well as the difficulty of reproducing gold, we still chose to use it, for the story itself revolved around the concept of gold. The art was done with acrylic paint on acetate, over-painted with gold paint. The gold borders were created using gold leaf.

The book was printed on one-hundred-pound Nymolla Matte paper, and each illustration was spot-varnished.  Color separations were made by Digicon Imaging Inc., Buffalo, New York, and the book was printed and bound by Tien Wah Press, Singapore, with production supervision by Angela Biola and Alison Forner. Along with Leo & Diane Dillon, the book was also designed with help from Kathleen Westray.

View more work by African American artists.

View more posts concerning African Americans.

View more Staff Picks.

- Elizabeth V., Special Collections Undergraduate Writing Intern

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Bought myself a good luck charm for my spinning wheel. I’ve called her Habetrot, after the fairy of the spinning wheel from the Scottish Borders.

In one tale about her, Habetrot reveals herself to a young women who, in order to be married, needs to prove herself an industrious spinner. After many false starts, Habetrot appears to her in the guise of an old women, unremarkable besides the length and thickness of her lips which have been deformed from wetting fibre to spin. This is how she is described in the Scots version of the tale:

“…for sittin on this stane wes the drollest littil auld wumman she haed ever seen in aw hir days. Atweill, an it haedna been for hir siller hair an the whyte nutch wi the freil she wure on hir heid, Mysie wad hae taen hir for a wee bit lassie, she wure sic a droll cuttie skirt raxin nae ferrer nor hir knees.

She hae a richt auld-farrant style aboot hir an she wad hae been a rael bonnie auld leddie, haed it no been for hir lips, that war verra lang an unco sonsie. This made hir gey ugsum, for aw hir rosie chowks an sheinin blek een.” [1]

Habetrot spins the yarn for the young woman which impresses both her mother and a passing laird. When laird wants her to prove her spinning ability, Habetrot and her fellow fairies appear, lips all deformed, to warn the laird that the young woman will end up like them if he sets her spinning. Astonished, the laird agrees to leave the spinning to Habetrot and married the young women.

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Illustration for "The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights," by Vyacheslav Nazaruk (1996)

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thanks for answering my ask!!

also, i feel like I know the general catholic answer for missing a day or a few of a novena (my adhd is winning rn), but would you say there's a difference btwn petitioning as a normal person and petitioning as someone desiring to develop a relationship with spirits (although arguably these r the same people) re: missing obligations due to unforeseen circumstances/exhaustion etc?

Hiya!

Well I kinda think you answered your own question; because what do you do in those circumstances? You get back in contact, apologise and see on how you can work on the relationship. Though saints are usually very forgiving, missing your obligations and breaking promises, even for them there would be a line. Don't agree to anything you cannot do in the long run.

And there is a difference between being caught in unforseen circumstances and just not having the motivation to do it. That's why stuff like that sould be simple and easy to do. I've come home from complete shit-show situations and just went up to my saints, explained it + a prayer. And then I did the thing the next day, but added some fancy incense. But there are saints/traditions who do not accept this. So be mindful of that fact before making any promises.

Take care!

- Toverij & Spokerij

#toverij & spokerij #working with saints #folk catholicism #questions

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Memo to myself; experiment more!

So; mixing rue with salt, letting it come to a simmer in an ibrik, and letting it steep for two days. Does sound like a great idea. And it worked as a treat to bless the mirror by the front door (to send back any negativity). BÚT! But the mirror had this greasy sheen to it?? It took me quite a few minutes to polish that away. Yet the mirror does it's thing perfectly. So perhaps the next time, I will try smoking the mirror. Only I think I will have to dose the amount of rue carefully- I might love rue's scent. But not everyone does. So for one mirror just a few leaves of it?

#toverij & spokerij #folk catholicism #het toverboek

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this may be a silly question but when working with saints, how does one dispose of offerings?

I've seen some shrines that just seem to accumulate stuff forever, but like, e.g., at the end of a novena, it makes sense to me to water some plants with the water I left out.

But stuff like plants/wreaths/etc, you don't want them to go bad? Same with like. Food. This has probably been asked like a million times but it's like the #1 reason why I don't set things out aside from water and a candle bc figuring out how to dispose of that stuff is v stressful to me, since 1) I wanna make sure nothing is invasive/can cause harm to the land and 2) throwing it away seems...bad.

If you have any advice, I'd appreciate it!

Hi!

Goodness, I am so sorry for my long overdue response! My apologies. So your question; this is exactly why I do not offer anything like food. Do you eat it? Bury it? Chuck it in the bin with a small prayer? It is highly situational. Also; I do not feel comfortable feeding saints food. A high number of them had a very complicated relationship with food/food attracts all kinds of entities. I usually go for the water and candle route. If I feel something extra is needed; incense! Water, candle, prayer and smoke makes a nice offering. Dry plant material; I save in a box, and twice a year I empty it into a fire- midwinter and midsummer. Luckily saints are pretty easy on this subject; prayer ís also an offering. Time is also an offering. On the rare occasion that I do offer food, and the times comes to take if out of the saint shrine; I say a prayer and talk to the saint. I talk as if I was talking to a welcome guest who had just finished their plate. And even after a party, you have to do some cleaning. So that helps me. And with putting the food in the bin; another prayer thanking the food. If done with gratitude, there should not be a problem. And again, my apologies for my late response! Take care!

Toverij & Spokerij

#toverij & spokerij #folk catholicism #working with saints #question

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Hello! How are you? Do you think when people immigrate to other countries some spirits accompany them? It's a fact that people take their beliefs with them to other places and doing so some spirits would follow them?

Hi Anon, I'm good, thanks for asking. Hope you are well too. I believe/know/believe that spirits can choose to do so, yes. That doesn't mean that they will stay the same. Simply because of the energy of the land/folklore will adapt. 'Once Upon a Hex' by Dennis Boyer talks about that subject. I greatly enjoyed the book. Take care! - Toverij & Spokerij

#toverij & spokerij #question #once upon a hex

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Hello, I hope you are having a nice day. I considered hexing a fascist politician but my divination tools kept telling me it would have no consequences on them and probably would have mostly negative effects on me, which makes me feel powerless. I am not experimented at all with hexing/cursing but I was initially thinking I might work with a puppet before giving up the idea. Would you have any suggestions for spell to affect the rise of fascist politicians that would be maybe suitable for a beginner ?

Hi dear!

My my my, now this is an interesting question ánd good manners?! I hope your day is well too, dear. Well first of all, listen to your divination. And secondly, be smart about it. What would be smart? If cursing X fascist politician would not have the effect you want, why don't you bless the one that is the Good Guy? Go and try divination on that. See what it says. And perhaps it is not you that needs to be doing this particular work.

Not a single politician is ever good. But if you have to pick between a fascist and the 'I want to make things better for my community without shitting on anyone else'-politician, it tends to get a lot easier, fast.

My answer is very short. And a lot, a LOT, more could be said about this kind of magic. Politics are nation wide things. Unfortunate for us, fascism is here. And we will have to deal with that darkness and pain as and when it shows it's head. See politicians as avatars of that particular energy. They are a person, but they represent something. They get a certain glamour and strength from it; it being the collective energy/egregore of X group. Going up against thát would result indeed in a rebounding hex. Or it having very little effect. So I am not very surprised by the outcome of your divination. Though glad to read that you are exploring options!

Also, if you are in the position- see how you can form a community where you live. Or influence one where you live. Fascists hate nothing more then a community that is inclusieve and thriving. There are LOADS of groups out there with information on how to make it hard for fascists to get a foot in the door. Or in your own social circles, help create a sense of community.

And to be honest, anon, I get it. The feeling of being powerless. We live in very interesting and frustrating times. So I leave you with this, a prayer. *click here*

A prayer for our time. By Josephine McCarthy. It might not seem much, but it helps me. And I hope it helps you. It helps me to see that even small acts can have huge effects. It helps me to stay sane. To find balance and go further. I hope this prayer helps you to find what it is you can do- magically and practically.

Take care anon!

- Toverij & Spokerij

#toverij & spokerij #question #hex fascists #josephine mccarthy #quareia #a prayer for our times

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Marken, the Netherlands

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Straô  |  Every spring, eight weeks prior to Easter, a procession of flower-draped draft horses rides to the beach to wash their legs in Zeeland’s sea water. The straô, an age-old tradition on the island of Schouwen-Duiveland, concerns six villages. The evil spirits, which according to old tales would have gathered in the horses’ legs, are rinsed out.

Lees hier meer over het straô rieën.

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The Blue Iris // Andrea Zanatelli

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Dutch spirits of the land.