Once upon a time there lived a nightingale and a blindworm, each with one eye. For a long time they lived together peacefully and harmoniously in a house. However, one day the nightingale was invited to a wedding, and she said to the blindworm, “I’ve been invited to a wedding and don’t particularly want to go with one eye. Would you be so kind as to lend me yours? I’ll bring it back to you tomorrow.”
Category: #FairytaleTuesday
#FairytaleTuesday: The Wolf and the Seven Kids
[CW: animal-on-animal violence] The wolf went away to a shopkeeper and bought a big piece of chalk, which he ate, and it made his voice soft. Then he returned to the house door of the seven kids and called out with a soft voice: “Dear children, let me in. I’m your mother, and I’ve brought something for each of you.”
#FairytaleTuesday: Good Bowling and Card Playing
[CW: animal cruelty] Now, there was a young man from a poor family who thought to himself, “Why not risk my life? I’ve got nothing to lose, and a lot to win. What’s there to think about?”
#FairytaleTuesday: The Virgin Mary’s Child
[CW: child abduction, violence against women] The woodcutter obeyed her. He fetched his child and gave her to the Virgin Mary, who took her up to heaven.
#FairytaleTuesday: The Companionship of the Cat and Mouse
“Oh!” said the mouse. “Now I know what’s happened! It’s as clear as day. You ate it all up when you went to serve as godfather. First the skin, then half, then . . .” "Shut up!” yelled the cat. “One more word, and I’ll eat you up!” “ All gone” was already on the tip of the poor mouse’s tongue. No sooner did she say it than the cat jumped on her and swallowed her in one gulp.
#FairytaleTuesday: The Frog King, or Iron Henry
The princess thought, “what nonsense the simple-minded frog is blabbering! He’s got to remain in his water. But perhaps he can get me my ball. So I’ll say yes to him.” And she said, “Yes, fair enough, but first fetch me the golden ball. I promise you everything.”
#FolkloreThursday Returns
Over the last five years or so most of my social media has been all "steampunk, steampunk, steampunk" and "libraries, libraries, libraries." While both of these subjects are near and dear to my heart, they have also been a huge focus of my graduate studies, both as a masters and as a PhD student. They have absorbed my thoughts to the point that I haven't really had the bandwidth to read or even think about much else. And that's a shame, because one of my very favorite things is folklore and fairytales. They were the first stories and books that I loved and that love has never gone away.
