Pearls

I have been thinking about things, not always the best idea but apparently the off button on my brain is missing.  Anyway one of the things that I was thinking about was how things haven't been going very well for me recently.  If you read my blog you will know I've had neighbour trouble, car trouble, redundancies at work and my gran is ill.  These thoughts could easily have become a self pitying path to depression but they weren't.

Instead I was thinking about how well I have been handling these things.  I have been stressed, upset and angry but not to the extreme.  I have been able to carry on with my life, going out, working and seeing friends while these unpleasant things were going on.  Not so very long ago I wouldn't have coped with these things, it could have gone two ways.  I would either have stressed myself into a manic mess where I would likely have gone a bit crazy with excessive going out and shopping, remember the handbags?  Or, I would have plummeted into a major depression and stayed in bed.

Mr Midnite would tell me that the bad things have been sent to show me I can cope.  It is easier to be positive when everything is good, the challenge is to stay positive when things aren't.  I used to get depressed sometimes for no reason so if something did happen I had no chance.  Now I have difficult things in my life and I still feel OK.

Not sure if I'm explaining this very well?

Anyway to reach the pearls from today's title.  I have a charm bracelet and I buy myself the occasional charm that means something.  I have a little heart to remind me to love myself and a little dog to remind me to be happy.  I went into the shop today to try and find something to signify turning negatives to positives.  I had no idea when I went in what that would be I just knew something would be there that would represent what I wanted.  I browsed the shop for a while and then spotted just the thing. 

When I saw it I immediately thought of how pearls are formed by the shelled creatures.  A little piece of dirt gets stuck inside and causes irritation so the creature forms a pearl to protect itself.  From an irritation it produces a thing of beauty.  A positive from a negative. Perfect!

One for Sorrow.........

A visitor from the US recently asked what the pretty black and white birds that we have in Scotland are called.  Magpies!  I hadn't really thought about it but was surprised (I don't know why) to find that they are not so common elsewhere in the world.  I was also surprised to hear them described as pretty because most people I know don't like them.  Why not?  The song of course:

One for sorrow, two for joy;

Three for a girl, four for a boy;

Five for silver, six for gold;

Seven for a secret, never to be told;
Eight for a wish, nine for a kiss;
Ten for a bird that's best to miss.

Or the older version:

One for sorrow, two for mirth,
Three for a wedding, four for a birth,
Five for silver, six for gold,
Seven for a secret not to be told.

Eight for heaven, nine for hell,

And ten for the devil's own sel'.

Why one for sorrow, two for joy?  Apparently they mate for life so seeing one means it's lost it's mate. Not  necessarily considering she could be sitting on eggs.  Seeing one Magpie is supposed to be bad luck, they have been considered an ill omen since the early 16th century.   For some reason, like crows, they are associated with the devil and seen as evil?

I know people who's day an be ruined because of one black and white bird.  This has lead me to suggest a stapling programme to ensure they are always seen in pairs.  People who lack a sense of humour think this is cruel.

Apart from the song people dislike them because they are cheeky, challenging and arrogant.  They are killers who are getting blamed for the decline of songbirds such as the thrush (although the RSPB have proved this isn't the case). As a result, they're often hunted but Magpies are cunning and difficult to trap. 

So they are just trying to survive (live long and prosper even), mate for life and have a cheeky chappie attitude so people hate them. They have adapted with the environment and people decide they are villains, bit ironic really.

So having someone described them as pretty made me take another look, they are beautiful, striking birds with a bluey / green tinge to their black feathers.  I also learned that they kill loads of creepy crawlies and pests so not so evil after all.  In China and Korea they are a symbol of happiness so at least someone loves them.

I've decided that the only superstitions I'm bothering with are ones that mean good things so as far as Magpies are concerned I'm following the Chinese.

Moonbow

Last winter when it was really cold I had the furry ones out at night and I saw the most amazing thing, a rainbow around the moon.  I stood outside for ages just looking at it, fantastic.  I had never seen anything like this before.  It was one of those things that make you appreciate how wonderful the world can be.

When I mentioned it most people hadn't seen one but one person said it was a moonbow and that they are really rare.  I did try to take a picture but my camera isn't that good.  By the power that is Google here are some from people with posh cameras:

Stolen from - link - where you can learn all about moonbows if you are of a curious nature.

Stolen from - link
These are the best pictures I could find but they are nothing like seeing the real thing.  Keep your eyes on the moon, its worth it.