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1. Imbolc.
2. Beltane.
3. Llamas.
4. Samhain.
   Apparently “imbolc” means “in the belly of the Mother,” because the seeds of spring are beginning to stir in the belly of Mother Earth.

The festival of ‘Beltane’ was traditionally celebrated on May 1st in Ireland and Scotland and marked the beginning of summer and the celebration of fertility of the earth. The festival was associated with the lighting of bonfires, which were seen as symbols of the sun’s power and the renewal of life.

Lammas Day, celebrated every August 1, is a wheat harvest festival that is also known as Loaf Mass Day. The holiday encourages celebrations and mass gatherings where individuals thank God for the first harvest of the season.

Samhain marked the Celtic New Year, the end of summer, and the end of the harvest season. It also signaled the beginning of winter, which they associated with death. On this day, the Celts believed the veil between the living and the dead was especially thin. This allowed spirits of the dead to visit the living.

I only got to know Sarah in the couple of years before she died. However, during that time, we had some splendid sessions and two of the tracks this E.P. were written as we jammed.
They were: Chains and Lord I bin Cryin’
The other two, the mandolin tunes Carty’s Bounce and Red Shoes for Sarah, had already been written, but they would probably have never been recorded if it weren’t for the enthusiasm shown by both Sraha and Dave.
In fact Sarah, named them both and played guitar when we first ran through them.
Sadly I think these recordings have been lost.
However it was during these visits to their wonderful house and grounds that I recal my fondest memory of Sarah.
It was a lovely summers day and we were outside on the swing playing.
Sarah put some meal worms in my hand and got me to hold them out for the birds to feed.
Lo and behold down came a robin and fed from my hand.
It felt like a miracle to me, that brush with with the wild among the trees and the flowers.
And this is how I remember Sarah, a child of nature most at home in the wild.
Steve

Steve Cartwright