July 2024 Newsletter

FEAST has numerous events (some free and some for a small fee) every month. To find out more go to their website here. 

July 10th Monday, 7:00 am, Singapore time.

To find out more and to register click here 

The campfire hisses and you hope those sounds are nothing more than the wind in the trees. Was that something stepping on a branch? Stories for a haunted summer night.

Who says scary stories are just for Halloween? Join master storyteller Laura Packer for an evening of campfire creepy stories you hope aren’t true. Vengeful spirits. Ghosts who want to get home. Places, people, and …things… that have no business lingering on this side of the veil.

Laura Packer has been telling stories for over 30 years in venues such as graveyards, theaters (where the ghosts made themselves known), and elsewhere. Her show “Haunted” won Best in Fringe in the Kansas City Fringe Festival.

Suitable for a mature 12 and up.

NOTE: If you can’t make the date, you can buy a ticket and watch the recording.

August 2, 9:00 am, Singapore time.

To register and find out more click here 

Rainy Days and Story Days 

Rainy Days and Holidays

Holidays and Fun Days

Fun Days and Fondness

Fondness and Family

Family and Familiarity

Familiarity and Thunder

Thunder and Lightning

Lightning and Downpour 

Downpour and Petrichor

Petrichor and Rainy Days 

Rainy days are ideal for indoor activities. As children, we spent hours indoors playing hopscotch, five stones and chess, or reading and sharing stories.

When the skies were grey, the earth moist, the land green and cool, stories and cheer went hand in hand. 

“The rain is falling all around; it falls on field and tree. It rains on the umbrellas here and on the ships at sea.” Robert Louis Stevenson

The Warsaw Mermaid

Karen and her brother Kian were visiting their grandparents by the sea.

One afternoon, Kian and Karen noticed a huge storm brewing. They could hear the sea roaring and noticed huge waves churning. They felt a little scared.

Grandpa tried to distract them and said, “I will tell you a story.”. The children began arguing. Karen wanted to hear a story of a mermaid and Kian wanted a story of thunder and lightning. Kian said, “Don’t you know I am a ceraunophile, I love lightning and thunder. I am a lover of thunderstorms.” Karen said, “And don’t you know, I love mermaids.” As their argument continued, grandma walked in with a huge mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows in it for each of them and a plateful of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies.

Karen and Kian were momentarily distracted and then continued their argument. Not wanting to upset either of them, grandpa turned to grandma and asked her which story she would like. Grandma did not have to think long, and said, “Why, a mermaid story of course. My father was a sailor. Sailors believed mermaids appeased the sea and ensured good weather. I would like this storm to subside and hence a mermaid story please.”

Kian momentarily looked sad but cheered up immediately for he knew that all of grandpa’s stories were amazing.

Long, long ago, two merry mermaids who were sisters happily spent their days swimming in the open seas. One sister was curious and full of wonderment of the ways of the world, and she took a detour and wandered into the river Vistula. She was mesmerized by what she saw around that river; flowers, trees, children, animals, houses. 

She spent her days swimming in the river. She expressed her joy through her songs. Her songs were sometimes happy, but sometimes they were sad. She felt her emotions through her singing. People nearby heard singing coming from the river, but none dared to investigate the source of the singing. 

One night, two fishermen were returning home late when they saw something shining! A mermaid was sitting on the riverbank and singing a song. They quickly hid behind some trees. 

They were excited and shared the story with the merchant whom they worked for. That merchant was a greedy man. He shouted and pushed his workers to work harder. No matter how many fish they caught, he was never happy and was always disgruntled. “More! More! More!” was all the fishermen heard. One day they caught a 100kg grouper and returned excited but all that the greedy merchant said was, “Just one?” 

Once the merchant heard about the mermaid, he had an idea. He told his fishermen, “Bring me that mermaid. Capture her.”  He hoped to keep her in a cage and charge a fee for people to see her. His coffers would fill up, he could get richer and perhaps rule the people of the land.

The fishermen were scared. They had heard stories of mermaids and their kindness; they did not wish to harm her, but they were fearful of the merchant’s wrath. 

They wove a strong basket out of willow. Then, very late in the evening when they were sure no one would be around they hid behind the reeds and when the mermaid came out of the river, they crept up and hurled the willow basket over her. The poor mermaid whimpered and wrestled but she could not escape. 

It was nearly daybreak by then and they knew that the riverbank would soon be bustling with people. They did not wish to be seen walking through the village with a mermaid in a willow basket. So, they took the mermaid to their friend Klimek’s barn that was near the river. They begged him to keep her for one day and promised that they would return late in the evening for her. 

Klimek agreed. He tried to go about the activities of the day, but his thoughts were with the mermaid. Wasn’t she hungry? With some food in hand, he went and peeked at her. He could see her through the wicker basket. She was singing her most soulful song. He stood there listening, spellbound by her song. 

As soon as she spotted him, she pleaded, “Let me go! Let me go, merciful man. Kindly let me go back to my home in the river.”

True to the meaning of his name, gentle and merciful Klimek cut open the basket. The mermaid thanked him before she snaked and slithered and disappeared into the depths of the gently flowing river. 

Every evening thereafter, Klimek went to the riverbank to listen to her singing. One full moon night she came out of the river towards Klimek, her body glistening in the moonlight and gave him a huge shell. She then dived back into the river. He took the shell home as a memory of a friend he met briefly. 

Many years later, the tiny village on that riverbank became the city of Warsaw. Travel to Warsaw and look for the coat of arms that stands proudly above the entrance to the city, and you will see the mermaid holding a sword in one hand and a shield in the other hand. 

When the wind blows through the willows along the Warsaw riverbank people share this story and wonder if it is the mermaid singing.

Keeping with the spirit of the mermaid, the city’s motto is Contemnit Procellas, which means, “It defies the storms.”

References:

Legend of the Warsaw Mermaid