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rainbowfic2013-10-15 11:19 pm
ysabetwordsmith) wrote in rainbowfic2013-10-15 11:19 pm
Poem: "Cimaruta"
Name: ysabetwordsmith
Title: "Cimaruta"
Story: Fiorenza the Wisewoman
Characters: Fiorenza, Otoniel, Vanna
Colors: Moonlight #20 Glisten
Supplies and Styles: None
Word count: 412
Rating: PG
Warnings: None
Summary: Fiorenza disperses malocchio from the village.
Notes: Feedback is welcome.
I need a story tag for Fiorenza the Wisewoman, please.
The following poem belongs to my series Fiorenza the Wisewoman. This is historic fantasy set in Renaissance Italy. Fiorenza excels at gardening, cooking, and herbalism. She also deals with most magical complaints in the village. Themes include rural life, fairytales, plant lore, communal living, practicality, and Italian culture.
"Cimaruta"
Fiorenza walks through the village
tallying up the signs of trouble --
here a cart wheel come off its axle,
there a sound horse suddenly gone lame.
The lid of a well has cracked in two
and the pieces fallen down inside;
a whole barrel of salted pork
has somehow managed to spoil.
Someone has cast malocchio over the village;
the signs are clear, and something
will have to be done about it.
The people have their protections --
Fiorenza has taught them well --
from the costly amulets of Venetian glass
done up as cobalt eyeballs for Otoniel's family
to the mano corno charms carved of cheap wood
for the poor shepherds who come to buy supplies
and the dried chili peppers hung above doorways.
It is not so easy to protect
every inch of the village,
but Fiorenza knows what to do
in order to sweep away the evil spell.
Before dawn she goes into her garden
to seek out the silvery-blue bushes of rue.
Carefully she cuts off a branch here, a branch there,
round leaflets that glisten with morning dew
and hold the power to end a spell.
Fiorenza plucks vervain flowers
to enhance the magic
and weaves them into the broom
that she is building.
To the tips of the rue twigs she fastens
a key to unlock the binding of the spell,
a waxing crescent for Hekate of the moon,
a sacred heart for the love of Jesus,
and a wooden fish to restore abundance.
Then Fiorenza walks through the village,
sweeping away the bad luck
and bringing in the good.
She sweeps over thresholds
and the pebbled garden paths,
between the cottages and shops,
down the streets and the crossroads,
over all the places where misfortune has struck.
She sweeps the dust of the malocchio
down to the bridge and into the river,
throwing the broom after it,
so the water may carry all to the sea
and be done with it.
When Fiorenza returns to the village,
she is stiff and sore from all the work,
her back bent like an old woman --
but there, there, the grandmothers
have done their own work and are waiting
for her with a basket packed with hot supper
and a flask of Vanna's liniment for sore muscles
whose recipe Fiorenza had yet to ferret out.
"Scopa nuova scopa bene,"
Fiorenza declares,
A new broom sweeps clean,
and so the task is done.
* * *
Notes:
Malocchio is Italian for Evil Eye. It is in essence a gaze attack to cast misfortune on a person or place.
Cimaruta means rue branch, and is an Italian folk charm usually made from silver with various symbols attached to a sprig of rue.
Vervain or verbena is an herb with magical properties.
Scopa nuova scopa bene.
English translation: A new broom sweeps clean.
ysabetwordsmith Title: "Cimaruta"
Story: Fiorenza the Wisewoman
Characters: Fiorenza, Otoniel, Vanna
Colors: Moonlight #20 Glisten
Supplies and Styles: None
Word count: 412
Rating: PG
Warnings: None
Summary: Fiorenza disperses malocchio from the village.
Notes: Feedback is welcome.
The following poem belongs to my series Fiorenza the Wisewoman. This is historic fantasy set in Renaissance Italy. Fiorenza excels at gardening, cooking, and herbalism. She also deals with most magical complaints in the village. Themes include rural life, fairytales, plant lore, communal living, practicality, and Italian culture.
"Cimaruta"
Fiorenza walks through the village
tallying up the signs of trouble --
here a cart wheel come off its axle,
there a sound horse suddenly gone lame.
The lid of a well has cracked in two
and the pieces fallen down inside;
a whole barrel of salted pork
has somehow managed to spoil.
Someone has cast malocchio over the village;
the signs are clear, and something
will have to be done about it.
The people have their protections --
Fiorenza has taught them well --
from the costly amulets of Venetian glass
done up as cobalt eyeballs for Otoniel's family
to the mano corno charms carved of cheap wood
for the poor shepherds who come to buy supplies
and the dried chili peppers hung above doorways.
It is not so easy to protect
every inch of the village,
but Fiorenza knows what to do
in order to sweep away the evil spell.
Before dawn she goes into her garden
to seek out the silvery-blue bushes of rue.
Carefully she cuts off a branch here, a branch there,
round leaflets that glisten with morning dew
and hold the power to end a spell.
Fiorenza plucks vervain flowers
to enhance the magic
and weaves them into the broom
that she is building.
To the tips of the rue twigs she fastens
a key to unlock the binding of the spell,
a waxing crescent for Hekate of the moon,
a sacred heart for the love of Jesus,
and a wooden fish to restore abundance.
Then Fiorenza walks through the village,
sweeping away the bad luck
and bringing in the good.
She sweeps over thresholds
and the pebbled garden paths,
between the cottages and shops,
down the streets and the crossroads,
over all the places where misfortune has struck.
She sweeps the dust of the malocchio
down to the bridge and into the river,
throwing the broom after it,
so the water may carry all to the sea
and be done with it.
When Fiorenza returns to the village,
she is stiff and sore from all the work,
her back bent like an old woman --
but there, there, the grandmothers
have done their own work and are waiting
for her with a basket packed with hot supper
and a flask of Vanna's liniment for sore muscles
whose recipe Fiorenza had yet to ferret out.
"Scopa nuova scopa bene,"
Fiorenza declares,
A new broom sweeps clean,
and so the task is done.
* * *
Notes:
Malocchio is Italian for Evil Eye. It is in essence a gaze attack to cast misfortune on a person or place.
Cimaruta means rue branch, and is an Italian folk charm usually made from silver with various symbols attached to a sprig of rue.
Vervain or verbena is an herb with magical properties.
Scopa nuova scopa bene.
English translation: A new broom sweeps clean.
no subject
Thank you!
no subject
Thank you!
I'm glad you like it! This is typical of the series, so you might want to read more.
>> She's very practical, and her world feels solid. Even the magic. <<
Yes, that's very much Fiorenza's approach. I use a lot of concrete details in this series to help ground the more fantastical bits. Much of the magic is folklore stuff like this. A few of the poems deal with more esoteric and dramatic fairytale type magic.
no subject
Thank you!
Re: Thank you!
Re: Thank you!