A Sunny Sunday`s Tale

 

Hello everyone,

It`s a beautiful Spring day today, really bright and sunny.  I couldn`t believe it when I opened the curtains this morning, we`d had snow overnight, not much more than a sprinkle but that is more than we usually have.  I`m pretty sure that Spring is winning the fight with Winter, slowly but very surely!

I did the usual Sunday morning ironing and happily for me there wasn`t very much to do so I got that out of the way and took Jake out.  He always knows that it`s time to go out when he hears me put the ironing board away, he gets restless and starts to whinge until he get his lead on.  Our walk was interesting this morning as it always is when the sun is shining.  There were lots of cats lying in their gardens sunbathing and Jake was very keen to meet them, he`s very partial to a cat that runs away.  Less so for a cat that stands it`s ground when we pass by, he knows that they`re not to be messed with and turns his head away when he gets the evil eye, the coward that he is! On the way back from our walk I was surprised to see a front garden full of furniture.  It looked as though the occupant had been evicted as there was a lot of stuff there.  Furniture and belongings from what looked like every room of the house...hmm I don`t suppose I`ll ever know.  The thing is, years ago I would probably have known who lived there even though it was quite a way from my house.  Nowadays I don`t know the name of my immediate neighbour, despite them having lived there for over 10 yrs.  We know the neighbours on the other side to us but as for everyone else in our road I can honestly say that I know just two other people, and what is worse, I`m beginning to like it that way.  There have been so many changes to our once, nice little neighbourhood.  We never saw a police presence, now it is an all too common occurence.  All the gardens round about were all well tended now though many still are, some are just neglected and downright scruffy.  I think that is one of the main reasons that I take to the country lanes when walking Jake.  I want to see things like the pretty church of St.Mary with it`s well kept graveyard ,and see cows and horses in the fields and birds in the hedgerows.  Quite honestly it`s not too bad were I live because we are so close to the countryside and near enough to the town, but I do hope we can move to a different area eventually.  The changes will continue to blight the area and I for one don`t want to be here when it gets too bad.

I`ve really gone off on a tangent today, I didn`t really know what to write about as not much has really happened today but at least it gave me something to say.  Before I go I hope you all have a really nice Sunday and are enjoying this fine weather.  I have a legend from Cornwall for those of you who enjoy them.  Bye Bye for now.

 

 

 

St.Michaels Mount, Cornwall.

 

St Michael’s Mount

Jack the Giant Killer.

Rising from the sparkling waters of one of England’s prettiest bays, St Michael’s Mount is a rocky jewel, whose magic slowly draws you across its sea-sprayed causeway on which, with each exhilarating step, you find yourself sinking ever deeper beneath its ancient spell of mysterious enchantment.

The Mount has a long and varied history. It has seen use both as a church and a Priory. The lofty castle that crowns its summit dates from the 12th century, and has been the private home of the St Aubyn family since 1659. Tradition holds that the island was at one time the eastern border of the lost land of Lyonesse. Legend maintains that King Arthur once battled a ferocious giant on its rock-strewn shoreline. It is, however, the Mounts association with another mythical figure that has transcended the centuries to be recounted time and again in storybooks the world over.

Tales of Jack the giant killer have swirled around the eerily beautiful Cornish coastline for nigh on six hundred years. But it wasn’t until the 18th century that the heroic exploits of this local farmers son found their way into the national consciousness, and thereafter, onto a worldwide stage. In his earliest incarnation Jack was a popular folk hero who came to St Michaels Mount to rid the mainland from the scourge of a wild and unruly giant named Cormoran. This hideous creature, whose fierce and savage aspect was the terror of the district, was eighteen feet tall and three yards round. Each night he would leave his gloomy lair atop the rock, and wade across the bay, to plunder the cattle of his mainland neighbours.

But one evening Jack swam over the sea to the Mount and dug a deep pit, which he covered with bracken, sticks and earth. The trap set, he waited for dawn to break, and then blew loudly on his horn to rouse the sleeping colossus, who raced angrily towards him, thundering as he came “you saucy villain, you shall pay dearly for breaking my rest, I shall broil you for my breakfast”. Moments later the ground gave way, and the astonished Cormoran tumbled headlong into the pit, where Jack finished him by sinking a pickaxe into his skull. When the justices of Cornwall heard of the giants defeat, they sent for the brave lad and declared that from that day forth he should be known as “Jack the Giant Killer”. They also presented him with a sword, and a belt on which was inscribed, in gold lettering,

This is the valiant Cornishman

Who slew the giant Cormoran.

Thereafter Jacks adventures took him far and wide. En route for Wales he killed two more giants who wished to avenge Cormoran’s death. Later he became a devoted servant to King Arthur’s son and, whilst seeking food for his hungry master, tricked another giant into giving him four magical possessions. A sword that could cut through anything; a coat that rendered him invisible; a cap that made him all- knowing; and a pair of shoes that enabled him to outrun anyone or anything. Suitably armed he was able to lift the spell that an evil magician had cast over a beautiful princess, whom the prince wished to marry. He was rewarded by being made a Knight of the Round Table, in which capacity Arthur set him the task of ridding Wales of the many giants that were terrorising the country.

So began Jack’s most famous encounter, as he pitted his wits against the ferocious, two headed giant, Thundel, who had sworn vengeance for the slaughter of his kinsmen. Thanks to the coat of invisibility, his savage adversary was unable to see Jack. He could, however, smell his hidden prey, and thus it was that from Thundel’s lips came what is undoubtedly the most famous utterance of the whole saga: -

Fa, fe, fi, fo, fum

I smell the blood of an Englishman.

Let him be alive, or let him be dead.

I’ll grind his bones to make my bread.

Unperturbed, Jack lured the giant onto a booby-trapped drawbridge, through which Thundel crashed into a deep moat, where the noble knight promptly beheaded him.

In Jack’s final adventure he rescued a beautiful maiden from a mountain top castle in which a wicked wizard had imprisoned her. Her delighted father granted Jack her hand in marriage, and the couple went on to live happily ever after on a vast estate presented to them by a grateful and admiring King Arthur.