Irma and Family
Some cool family meals images:
Irma and Family
Image by Old Shoe Woman
Friends and family came from Vancouver, British Columbia; Pennsylvania; Florida; and Georgia to celebrate with Irma. Everyone enjoyed music from DJ James, a delicious fish fry meal, birthday cake, fellowship, and dancing after the meal.
DSC00016
Image by washuugenius
Fyvie Castle
Located north-west of Aberdeen, Scotland is the five-towered castle of Fyvie. Each of its five towers are named for the powerful families who owned this beautiful example of baronial architecture
Fyvie is not only a haunted castle, but also a cursed castle. Thomas the Rhymer, known also as True Thomas, was a well known prophet who had supposedly received his gift of Sight because of time spent “under the hollow hill” with the Fae Queen. Thomas had a habit of traveling the land and requesting hospitality wherever he stopped. In those days hospitality—a meal, entertainment and a place to sleep—was regularly granted to travelers. Those were superstitious times and many believed the gods and devils roamed the Earth freely, checking up on mortals whenever curiosity struck them. Rather than accidentally offend a vengeful god, people tried to grant hospitality whenever possible. So it was simply understood that when Thomas the Rhymer mentioned wanting hospitality he should be given it. But Thomas tended to prophesy tragedy…
Two main versions of the legend surrounding Thomas and Fyvie are popularly known today. The first alludes to the castle’s owners being worried about what Thomas might prophesy in their castle, so they refused him hospitality outright. Not only is this unlikely, it would have been viewed as exceedingly foolhardy. The other version of the tale is that Fyvie kept its doors open for either seven years and a day or seven and a half years waiting for Thomas—then, on a gusty day Thomas approached and the wind slammed the door shut. Either way, the outcome of the stories is the same—Thomas cursed the castle with a rhyme that essentially proclaimed:
Fyvie, Fyvie, thou’ll never thrive
As long as there’s in thee stones three:
There’s one in the oldest tower,
There’s one in the lady’s bower,
There’s one in the water-gate,
And these three stones you’ll never get!
People have interpreted the prophet’s curse as relating to three stones that will weep when the Lord of Fyvie is in danger. One stone seems to have been found and does exude water from time to time—seemingly not in relationship to other rocks throughout the rest of the castle. Others interpret the curse as relating to primogeniture and the castle and a need to return three stones to their original location.
Since the time of Thomas the Rhymer’s curse, Fyvie Castle has had its share of problems. No castle heir has been born on the estate and no father has been able to pass the estate to his firstborn son—the eldest boys never outlast their fathers. – www.realhaunts.com/scotland/fyvie-castle/
Fyvie Castle Day 5
August 8, 2009
