2026 O : Obelisk

 

An excerpt from Windmaster of a traveler's detour to the perfect “O” obelisk.

To someone who until recently had eschewed horses for the rolling deck, riding Kaleigh without benefit of saddle or bridle was a new experience. Both her and Dal’s laughter mingled with the soft swoosh of the grass as the fàlaire loped across the meadow, creating wraith-like swirls in the morning mist. Even at a leisurely pace, they reached the ring of stones while the sky was still turning from silver into the bright pink, which at sea heralded bad weather on the horizon.

The call of ancient magic called out with a force Ellspeth felt in her bones. “What is this place?”

“In the times of many ancestors past, this was a place of fiosachd, of good fortune. Eventually someone set up the circle of stones.”

Dal slid from Taer’s back and walked around the stones. Ellspeth could see the five outer ones were as tall as a man. The center stone, a circular spire, twice as tall as the wizard, held court and loomed over a small stone bench. An outer circle of white pebbles, a handspan wide and three or four fingers high, gleamed as a halo around the rocks.

“It is a tradition for mountain people to leave a pebble at a place like this as an offering or just to acknowledge their presence,” Dal explained. “Those embarking on a long journey often take a stone with them for safe travel. We have time. Come feel the music in the rocks.”

The moment her feet touched the ground Ellspeth felt safe. A spot halfway around the circle seemed the place for the pebble in her hand. When she knelt to place it atop a small cairn of similar ones, she thought she could hear the voices of all those who had stopped there. 

~till next time Helen 

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2026 M : Mothers

 

After April comes May, and with it Mothers’ Day. In honor of mothers everywhere, introducing a few of the women in my life and those of the dragshi and the world of Windmaster.

 Woman who inspired the character
of Eilidh, chieftain of Clan Daimh
and my best table buddy

Helen Boganski Henderson 

     Betty Jane Miller (mother)

     Jessie Treon (grandmother) name used for Anastasia’s dragon soul twin

     Susan Chippi (grandmother)

Lady Ellspeth of the House of Cszabo

     Mirrim captain of the Northern Pearl (mother)

     Rima captain of the Mountain Mist (grandmother)

Lord Dal

    Eilidh (mother) dowager chieftain of Clan Daimh, inherited rule of the clan after husband’s death

     MarEilidh (great-grandmother) gave Dal the amber stone used to unlock one of the clues to the cave of the hidden tool that could control magic

Lord Branin

     Liath (mother)

Anastasia of clan Weiss

   Voirrey (mother)

   Arianrhod (silver circle)

~till next time Helen 

If you want to see my previous postings for the challenge, go here. If you're following other blogs in the challenge, here's the master list of the participants.

2026 L : Lilac, daffodils, It’s spring. Oh, my.

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 A personal reflection on some of the things that indicate spring. Even before the leaves can be seen, a layer of green powder covers everything outside from car windows to farm equipment. forsythia bushes and clumps of Daffodils add pops of yellow to the world. Beneath the old peach tree on my childhood farm a circle of daffodils disturbed the brown stable of last year's hay field. 

Image by -Rita-👩‍🍳 und 📷 mit ❤ from Pixabay

However the most vivid memory of the shift between winter and summer was the scent of lilac. Large vases of the purple flowers sat in the middle of the kitchen table. The source of this bounty was a ten-foot tall, twenty foot diameter bush that to me seemed ancient. Years of children playing hide and seek branches wore a path through the middle. Even the animals enjoyed the shade of the branches. A bonded pair of a sheep and a Shetland pony evoked laughter as long as you didn't get caught in the stampede when the sheep realized the pony was out of sight and raced around the lilac bush to find him. 

Below are two excepts containing flowers at ceremonies. One from Windmaster and the other from Windmaster Legacy.

A Southern Sea handfasting

“My friends, let us ask the water gods for success for our hunters and blessings for those who journey on the morrow.” 

A young man, a few seasons short of his second decade, led a woman the same age to where Semelen stood. The boy’s face was solemn, the girl’s shy and wistful. The old wizard wrapped a floral vine around the pair’s wrists. His hands upon the pair’s heads, he closed his eyes and spoke a blessing in an ancient tongue. The couple departed hand-in-hand into the jungle. 

A few minutes later another couple approached Semelen, who repeated the short ceremony. This couple ran off toward the beach, sleeping mats tucked under their arms. 

Ellspeth slipped around the dying fire, her light tread silent on the soft carpet of short grass. 

Dal looked up into her eyes, now a light willow green sparkling with emotion. 

“For a safe journey.” She placed a floral wreath around Dal’s neck. 

Dal fought down the feelings that rose with Ellspeth’s touch. Then his eyes hooded with suppressed passion, he stood. A swift motion lifted the wreath from his neck and placed it around Ellspeth’s. Her fingers felt warm in his as he led her over to Semelen. At their approach, the islander’s brown face glowed with a broad smile.

 Flowers at a king’s reception 

Two floral wreaths of purple trumpet flowers interwoven with orange blossoms from the southern isle hung around the bard’s neck. “Those flowers must have been hothouse raised,” Vika whispered as he guided Ellspeth the final few steps to the waiting trio. “The trumpet flowers are only found in the highest mountain meadow and should just now be breaking through the ground. They are almost as difficult to grow as the island blossoms. It is a tribute to you and Dal that Fraunces had them produced for this day.”  

And just because it is spring, one of my favorite pictures, cherry blossoms.

~till next time Helen

If you want to see my previous postings for the challenge, go here. 

If you're following other blogs in the challenge, here's the master list of the participants.

Buy Windmaster at Amazon and These Sites

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