The Butterfly

I boogered my fretting hand thumb again last week and playing my ukulele and guitar is back to hurting. 😢 But you know what they say about musicians: they only stop playing when there is no more music in them!

Good thing I know how to play a few different instruments, eh? Gotta get my music fix in, somehow. 🙃

I used to play the Irish tinwhistle (or pennywhistle or Irish whistle or Celtic whistle or...) back in the day. I fell in love with the sound when Riverdance came out and I found myself pursuing Irish step dancing. When I injured myself and could not dance anymore, I took up the whistle.

I played (and played and played... a LOT...) clear through into my college days, joining a wonderfully raucous Irish band called “The Wild Colonials,” and played with them until I moved away. 💕 (I still miss playing with them, it was a hoot!)

And then somewhere along the way, I lost track of the instrument, pursuing “cooler” things like Indie singer-songwriting and whatnot... but the Celtic music stirs my soul in a way nothing else (except worship) does. It is a little ironic that even after all these years, this is what I come back to. Even after 12 years away, I end up back here, at the beginning, once again.

“The Butterfly” is a traditional slipjig or dance in 9/8 time. Think: triplet waltz. Except faster. And more floaty. Slipjigs were written for women softshoe dancers, and capitalized on the feminine grace with which they could move. Check out Jean Butler’s number in the original Riverdance, “The Countess Cathleen/Women of the Sidhe.” She’s got it.

I’m really enjoying this Autumn we’re having here in eastern Washington. 😍 It is so exceptionally beautiful this year! I could just feast on the colors alone. 💕

(Mirrored on Weku)