Today marks Imbolc and St Brides Day ... Imbolc is one of the four major "fire" festivals, lying half way between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. It is traditionally a festival honouring Brigid, she became woven into the Christian church as St Bridget. She is a Goddess of healing, poetry and smithcraft, Goddess of Fire, of the Sun and of the Hearth, she brings fertility to the land and its people and is closely connected to midwives and new-born babies. So why Oystercatchers... To the Gaels this bird is an emblem of St. Bride, who carried one in each hand. Legend has her arriving on the shores of South Uist with an oystercatcher on each wrist. When she was becalmed at sea, oystercatchers flew to her boat and by the beating of their wings, filled the sails of the boat so that she could sail safely to land. In Gaelic, the Oystercacher is called the Guide of St Bride, as she was supposed to send the birds to guide sailors to safety. It bears the form of a cross on its plumage as it once covered Christ with sea-weed when his enemies pursued him. . . . #imbolc #stbridget #oystercatchers #stbride #anthrozoology #celticmythology #irishfolklore #paganfestival #pagangodessoffire #pagangoddessbrigid #linocut #printmaking #monotype #reliefprinting #inthestudio #lino #contemporaryart #art #illustration #contemporaryprintmaking #humananimalrelationship #get_imprinted #ukprintmakers #narrative

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