horse, swan, raven, i have felt these all were my spirit so i know i am a valkyrie dreamer and giver of hope, light, and magic i will forever shine; no man will ever take away my luster i mistook you for a hero but you were a villain that will be lost in the last battle no one will mourn your passing even the father of lies will be happy to see his son is no longer breathing when your heart stops beating you will look into my eyes begging for mercy i will only give you the coldness you gave when you broke my heart forcing me to rise upon the wings of phoenixes as i reconstructed from the ashes. About Linda M. CrateLinda M. Crate's works have been published in numerous anthologies and magazines both online and in print. She is a two-time pushcart nominee and the author of the Magic Series. She has four published chapbooks the latest of which is My Wings Were Made To Fly (Flutter Press, September 2017).
You can find her on: https://twitter.com/thysilverdoe https://www.instagram.com/authorlindamcrate/ https://www.facebook.com/Linda-M-Crate-129813357119547/
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i am a raven they chose me my humanity is different than your own magic and light are woven in my bones in this battle you may survive, but only until it is over; then your greed will be the noose that snares you to the darkest underworld you will not be kissed by the lips of freya or odin even loki will scorn your presence the goddess of the underworld won't look your way but in contempt and disgust that ever such a woeful creature was born inhabiting the realm of earth from which he sorely didn't deserve. About Linda M. CrateLinda M. Crate's works have been published in numerous anthologies and magazines both online and in print. She is a two-time pushcart nominee and the author of the Magic Series. She has four published chapbooks the latest of which is My Wings Were Made To Fly (Flutter Press, September 2017).
You can find her on: https://twitter.com/thysilverdoe https://www.instagram.com/authorlindamcrate/ https://www.facebook.com/Linda-M-Crate-129813357119547/ i choose for you to live, but a life of fear in the shadows and every corner of misery you've etched for others every nightmare will consume you until you are no more; and no one will hear your cries for help or mercy-- you can have meals with the other monsters gnawing on bones and imitations of light, but you will never find anything that heals you; i promise that vengeance will be taken for me by the anger of the moon and stars i am the daughter of the moon with claws and wings they call me valkyrie life and death are held in my palms i give you life but a cursed one for everything you broke in me that you promised that you wouldn't-- you may have broken my rose tinted glasses, but you didn't choose me in this battle between nightmares and dreams the light shall be the one that strangles life from your bones and renders you into the hand of the underworld. About Linda M. CrateLinda M. Crate's works have been published in numerous anthologies and magazines both online and in print. She is a two-time pushcart nominee and the author of the Magic Series. She has four published chapbooks the latest of which is My Wings Were Made To Fly (Flutter Press, September 2017).
You can find her on: https://twitter.com/thysilverdoe https://www.instagram.com/authorlindamcrate/ https://www.facebook.com/Linda-M-Crate-129813357119547/ Angels of Death, Angels of Valhalla.Valkyries are more-or-less the Norse version of angels of death, except significantly more badass in their job description, in their physical aspect, and in what they represent. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, they are the maidens of Odin who walk along the battlefields of men and choose from the slain those who are worthy to enter into Valhalla.
It is interesting to me that Odin does not do the choosing himself, but rather he entrusts this job – a job that means the difference between eternal joy and misery for the dying – to women. Unlike the angel of death from Christian mythology who seems to follow the directions of a higher being, the Valkyries are allowed to do as they want, killing and denying rewards to those they dislike while protecting and rewarding those they do. And so these maidens decide the eternal fates of men. Valkyries appear in mythology both as purely supernatural beings and also at times as some demigods, and so I frequently imagine something that looks less like an angle more akin to a Viking shield maiden, specifically Lagertha from the History Channel TV series Vikings. She is a fierce fighter, a loving mother, and one of the most fantastic female warriors ever seen on television. She protects those she loves like a mother bear, she is unfazed by adversity of any kind – whether it be the near-starvation of their city or the betrayal of her trusted friend – and rains havoc down on those who wrong her and hers. If I ever had a Guardian angel looking over my shoulder, I would want it to be her. Valkyries – due to their half or full supernatural powers and their serving of Odin – represent both the power of a god and of women. Unlike in Christian mythology which tends to gender both God and the angels as male and gives the powers of life and death to their god, in Norse mythology Odin gives the power of deciding who dies and who lives to his women warriors, as if he knows they have better instincts about who is worthy of Valhalla. This seems to me to be an empowering image, and reminds me of the Amazonian warriors, who need no men to organize and order them around. Valkyries are the embodiment of life and death in the beauty of the female form without any allegiance either to men or any god. They are the ultimate warriors, and they will take you to Valhalla. If you've been looking at our website today you might have noticed that we no longer have an essay editor. Shari Marshall had to step down this week, we are all very sad to see her go. Please be sure to follow her writing as she continues it elsewhere. She blogs and is also on twitter.
We here at Cauldron Anthology want to thank Shari for all that's she's done for our magazine. She was invaluable as a team member. Thank you! Birth Is A War StoryBirth is a war story. There are few things more powerful than birth. In the myths Izanami gave birth to nine children, and she created even more gods and goddesses. I was in my early teens the first time I saw a child born into this world. I've seen this cataclysmic event nine times now. I believe that birth isn't just about the creation of children. I believe you are giving birth when you bring anything creative into the world. It is a war to be female. It is a war to give life. Weave you stories and send them to us. We can't wait to read, or listen or see your work.
She Who InvitesIzanami—one of the first divine beings summoned in Japanese myth—sways hips and spear to create an island, speaks first during her wedding ceremony, propriety be damned, births devils and fiery children. Breaking from tradition, reacting in both self-preservation and indomitable persistence with no recompense for the men who continually push her to the underworld, to the cave in which she is buried. Housing a dichotomy of life and death in her palm, Izanami, “she who invites,” peels herself free, resisting at every turn the story laid out for her. These peels exist in women—the will survive in terrifying times, the knowledge of creation and destruction, the resistance of stories we’re fed time and again; we all know some facsimile of these truths. Never be fooled into thinking the narrative written by yourself is not an act of revolution. Izanami wills herself into any place she wishes, fighting to be heard by all. Izanami's invitation is for you. We know this fight. We know it well.
Our third and last theme for the year is Izanami-no-Mikoto. In Japanese mythology she is a goddess of life and death. The editors and I were looking into mythology about rebirth and came across some stories about Izanami and we thought that she would fascinating inspiration for poems and art.
Like Izanami, women are life-bringers in so many ways, not just through the birth and rearing of children. There are many ways to give life, and the form we most love here at Cauldron is the giving life to stories, poems, art. We can't wait to receive new submissions! Girls Just Want To Be WitchesI love stories about witches. When I was six I wanted to be a witch. I was so obsessed with witches that one day I borrowed a book from my local library that contained real-life spells. Cool, I know! Unfortunately, when I got home I realised that the only ingredient I had in my witchy arsenal was water. So, I commenced making potions that consisted of water, mud, and half of my mother’s garden (sorry Mum). To my great disappointment, none of my potions or spells worked. It was official, I truly was a Muggle.
All of my favourite witch stories include things that are so magical, they somehow seemed real, which is why for many years I believed the broom in the shed was really a Nimbus 2000 in disguise and that any old crone with a face-wart I came across was going to kidnap me, force me to eat mountains of candy, and then cook me for supper. It’s that uncanniness that makes witches so intriguing, and why I so desperately want to be one. The Valkyrie’s DecisionIn mythology, the Valkyrie is being portrayed as someone with the ability to move among a battlefield, and choose who lives, who dies. She’s not just choosing who gets to continue living though – she’s choosing the path of their afterlife. It strikes me as quite the responsibility. What happens if she chooses “wrong”?” and is there even such a thing? Does she ever regret whom she chooses? When I first learned about the Valkyrie in more depth, and what she does, the phrase that crossed my mind was judge, jury and executioner – not so much for the execution, but for the way that she has to carry out unpleasant actions of walking a battlefield.
Now, when I’m thinking about the Valkyrie, the thing that gets me is the decision making: she’s always deciding. Always weighing up one or another. This isn’t to say that I want to read exclusively battlefield epics wherein our heroine decides between A and B. Why not expand the scope? Put her in a range of other scenarios where she has to judge and decide – or, flip the coin. Take away decisions. I can’t wait to see what you come up with. |
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