Celebrating International Women's Day 2021
Retold by Anne Errington
This is a story told last year on International Women's Day at the Catstrand in Scotland. It was the last Confluence meeting before the corona virus caused the world to go into lockdown.
It was a sad and difficult year for many but we have hope that 2021 will be a better year when we can again be together with family and friends. Also in 2021 the creative spirit will flow again and it will be a year of many stories and amazing images. The theme of International Women’s Day 2021 is ‘Lets all choose to challenge’ and the story below is one that fits well.
Some of our female ‘Confluencers’
Image courtesy of Confluence
‘Maol A Chliobain’ by Anne Errington
There were three sisters and they said to their mother they were off to seek their fortune. The mother asked her eldest whether she wanted half a loaf of bread and her blessing, or the whole loaf and her curse. “ I will have the whole loaf.” The mother then turned to her middle daughter and asked her whether she wanted half a loaf and her blessing or the whole loaf and her curse. “ I will have the whole loaf.” She looked at her youngest, “and what about you?” “ I will have half a loaf and your blessing.” The mother gave her all three loaves.
The three sisters set out to seek their fortune but the two eldest ones did not want their little sister with them. So they tied her to a tree and walked on. Soon they heard footsteps behind them and there was their sister, Maol a Chliobain, carrying the tree on her back. They tied her to a pile of rocks but soon they heard footsteps behind them and there was Maol a Chlioban with the pile of rocks on her back. They tied her to a peat stack and soon they heard footsteps behind them and there she was again with a pile of peat on her back. They were not going to stop her so she travelled with them.
Night came and they arrived at the house of a giant. The giant’s mother welcomed them but said they would need to share a bed with the giant’s three daughters. All were soon asleep but for Maol a Chlioban. The giant decided that he was very thirsty and he called his gillie(servant) to him.
“Bring me the blood of one of the human girls.”
“ How will I know them?”
“They have necklaces of horse hair, my daughters have necklaces of amber!”
Maol of Chlioban quickly changed the necklaces. The gillie went in , the light of the lamp made the amber shine on her sister’s necks, so he killed the giant’s eldest daughter and took a bowl of her blood to the giant. He drank it all. “MORE!” he shouted. The gillie went in and killed the giant’s second daughter and took him a bowl of her blood. “MORE!” he shouted. The gillie went in and killed the giant’s last daughter. Maol a Chliobain tucked her sisters under her arms and ran out of the house. The giant saw her as she ran down the path. He ran after her.
They arrived at the river. Maol a Chlioban took a hair out of her head and threw it across the water. It became a bridge so she could cross but the giant could not.
“ You are over there Maol a Chlioban!”
“ I am indeed, though it angers you.”
“You killed my three bald headed daughters.”
“ I killed your three bald headed daughters, though it angers you”
“ When will you come again?”
“ When my business brings me.”
Maol A Chlioban travelled on with her two sisters and met a farmer with three sons. She told them her tale. The farmer said her eldest sister could marry his eldest son if Maol a Chliobhan would go back to the giant and fill a pot with gold and another with silver. She agreed.
When she arrived back at the giant’s house he was fast asleep on his treasure chests. Maol a Chlioban stood and thought for a moment. She got a bench and put it beside the treasure chests, she then went out and picked up two wet cold stones. She went to his side and where there was a gap between his trousers and his shirt she placed a cold wet stone. He moved away from the wet cold stone. She put the other stone to his side, he moved away from it. So she did until he had shifted himself off the chests of treasure and was now asleep on the bench. She filled her pots with gold and silver and ran out of the house. The giant saw her as she ran down the path. He ran after her.
They arrived at the river. Maol a Chlioban took a hair out of her head and threw it across the water. It became a bridge so she could cross but the giant could not.
“ You are over there Maol a Chlioban!”
“ I am indeed, though it angers you.”
“You killed my three bald headed daughters.”
“ I killed your three bald headed daughters, though it angers you”
“You stole my silver and gold.”
“I stole your silver and gold, though it angers you.”
“ When will you come again?”
“ When my business brings me.”
She went back to the farmer and gave him the silver and gold. He offered his second son to her second sister if she would steal the sword of light from the giant. She agreed.
Maol a Chliobhan arrived back at the giant’s house and climbed onto the roof and into the rafters above a table. There was a big pot of porridge there. She went and got some salt and poured it all into the pot. When the giant came in he ate the porridge for his tea and soon went to bed. He woke up calling for his gillie and telling him the he had an awful thirst and the gillie was to get him some water but none could be found in the house. The giant told the gillie to take his sword of light and to go out to the well and get a bucket of water. Maol a Chlioban came down from the roof and went and climbed a tree by the well.
The gillie came to the well with the sword of light. He arrived at the well, put down the sword, picked up a bucket and leaning over the well began to lower it. Maol a Chliobhan leapt down the tree, pushed the gillie down the well and stole the sword of light. The giant heard the cry of the gillie, he ran out the house and saw Maol a Chliobhan as she ran down the path with the sword of light. He ran after her.
They arrived at the river. Maol a Chlioban took a hair out of her head and threw it across the water. It became a bridge so she could cross but the giant could not.
“ You are over there Maol a Chlioban!”
“ I am indeed, though it angers you.”
“ You killed my three bald headed daughters.”
“ I killed your three bald headed daughters, though it angers you”
“ You stole my silver and gold.”
“ I stole your silver and gold, though it angers you.”
“ You have killed my rough skinned gillie.”
“ I have killed your rough skinned gillie, though it angers you.”
“ You have stolen my sword of light.”
“ I have stolen your sword of light, though it angers you.”
“ When will you come again?”
“ When my business brings me”
She went back to the farmer and gave him the sword of light. He said she could marry his youngest son if she stole the tangled hair buck from the giant. She agreed.
Maol a Chlioban returned to the giant’s house but this time she went to the back of the house and she caught the tangle haired buck but the giant caught her.
“ Now, Maol a Chliobhan, if you had me as I have you, what would you do?”
“ I would kill a buck, take out his stomach and put you in it. Then I would hang you from a tree and go and look for elder sticks and come back and beat me till I was a pile of twigs.”
The giant killed a goat buck, took out its stomach and put Maol a Chliobhan in the stomach, hoisted her up a tree and went off to look for elder tree sticks. After a while the girl began to call out, “ What a city! It shines like gold. It is a city of light, what beauty I see.” The giant’s mother comes out and asks her what she is shouting about. “ It is a city of gold I am in, I see a shining light, the flowers are jewels.”
’”Let me get in!” shouted the mother.
“Oh no,” said Maol a Chliobhan. “It is so beautiful.”
“ Just for a short while, please.”
“ Alright, just for a short while. Lower me down and let me out and I will help you in.”
That is what happened and Maol a Chliobain stole the tangled haired buck.
The giant came home and beat the sack with his elder stick.
“ It is me, it is me!”
“ I know it is you.”
He beats the bag till his mother was like a pile of twigs. He roared with anger when he saw his dead mother and turned and there was Maol a Chliobhan running away down the path. He ran after her.
They arrived at the river. Maol a Chliobhan took a hair out of her head and threw it across the water. It became a bridge so she could cross but the giant could not.
“ You are over there Maol a Chlioban!”
“ I am indeed, though it angers you.”
“You killed my three bald headed daughters.”
“ I killed your three bald headed daughters, though it angers you”
“You stole my silver and gold.”
“I stole your silver and gold, though it angers you.”
‘You have killed my rough skinned gillie.”
“I have killed your rough skinned gillie, though it angers you.”
“You have stolen my sword of light.”
“I have stolen your sword of light, though it angers you.”
“ You have killed my mother.”
“ I have killed your mother, thought it angers you.’
“ You have stolen my tangled haired buck.”
“I have stolen your tangled hair buck, though it angers you.”
“What would you do if you were over here and I was over there?”
“ If I was over there I would put my head in the river and drink it dry then cross over.”
The giant put his head in the river and drank and drank till he burst and Maol a Chliobain went on her way!
Image - courtesy of Ian Biggar