Who?
She’s the Night Hag … one of three sisters who defied god and was
transformed into a creature that never again looked at the sun.
She’s a witch called Strix … a name given to her by the ancient
Romans. She’s a creature of the night whose voice brings terror to
those who hear it … for she’s a harbinger of death. I have an
image of her in rhinestones with ruby red eyes of glass.
And yet she’s considered wise. She epitomizes female wisdom. She is
sacred to Athene and Minerva. She is sacred to the goddesses of the
night … Hecate and Persephone. Native Americans considered her to
have powers of divination. However … to all she is one to be
feared. I have an image of her in the form of a brooch.
She is feared by the Chinese and the Mexicans and the Japanese and
the Egyptians and the Etruscans. She is not feared by the Americans
'cuz we ain’t afraid of crap. She has been associated with Satan.
Doesn’t bother us. Her song has been known as the “Song of Death.”
We shrug. We’re a tough bunch of cookies.
Ovid claimed she attacked children at night and tore their flesh and
drank their blood. Some say she is the descendent of the Harpies.
Some say she’s a nymphomaniac witch. Now there’s a thought. I never
heard of one of those. Makes me wonder about their choice of a means
of locomotion. She can fly-- some say–in through the bedroom window
of a youth she desires. She is one of the most popular subjects for
jewelry. I have an image of her.
She crosses the borders of all mythologies. She’s in the legends of
the Scots. She is the Welsh flower-maid Blodeuwedd. She’s in the
legends of the Celts and the Irish. She has been considered an
adulteress and a murderer. But we don’t care … we Americans.
We’re above the stuff legends are made of. We have given her our own
name. We have given her an image of unsurmountable wisdom. We have
given her enormous eyes to reflect her intelligence under moonlit
skies. We have represented her as a loveable creature in our
cartoons.
We have given her a name. We have called her Owl.
For those of you who are new to this thing called Tidbits…may I
direct you to my home page at www.tyler-adam.com where you will
scroll down the left side menu till you get to the area that says
Tidbits Graphics … and then click on the link that says: Who? …
where you will see a graphic of our Rhinestone Brooch.
And there ya have it. That’s it for this week folks. Catch you all
next week. Benjamin Mark
-- http://www.tyler-adam.com --