Piero Barone, Pieromio and Shamash Sigils!

No joke on that exhaustion!  The morning errands took me until 1 in the afternoon; then I stood in a hot kitchen making cookies in the shape of crescent moons and magic mushrooms (not as easy as you might think, but quite creative, I thought, if I do say so myself).  By 3:30 in the afternoon, my back was killing me and my ankles had ... well, coincidentally ... mushroomed.

The blessings of the day?  I was able to find a beautiful chain for the cimaruta ... I learned that renting a moving van from my storage people was cheaper than U-Haul ... I have all my checks cut ... the comforter that had been in my trunk for almost two years is finally at a dry cleaners until Wednesday ... my Venetian masks arrived on time.  On the other hand ... the Italian wedding cookies were a complete bust because I dropped the baking tin down on the open oven door shattering the cookies before they set, and ... I’m so incredibly tired I’m ready to keel over in a pile on the floor.

When I could find a spare second, I worked on invoking “Pieromio”, who might be confused with Piero Barone of Il Volo, but only because the spirit I am envisioning resembles him physically, right down to those incredibly hot vampire fang freckles near his armpit – I don’t know the real Piero personally, so would suggest that the invoked Piero emotionally and in personality resembles ME more than it resembles Piero Barone The First, who is right now wowing full arenas in Miami and Orlando with his magnificence before they all head back north to Radio City Music Hall!!

I should add that “worked on” involved raising and envisioning forms of energy, which is one of the skills we are beginning to be taught in the class last week.  This involved rubbing your palms together briskly and then holding your hands apart, moving them back closer together and feeling a “resistance” between your palms.  I felt nothing, and was immediately certain that I was dead and had no aura or energy.  This theory was “pooh-pooh’ed” vigorously, so I’m still working on it.  I can feel a male hand closing around my ankle (see March 8), but can’t feel energy between my palms?

I did learn the story of Mabon, though, so with gratitude to the website I borrowed this from:

http://www.angelfire.com/wa3/angelline/mabon_lore.htm

“The story of Mabon ap Modron, the Welsh God, (the "great son of the great mother"), is celebrated. The Equinox is the birth of Mabon, from his mother Modron, the Guardian of the Otherworld, the Healer, the Protector, the Earth. Mabon was taken when he was a mere three nights old. Through the wisdom of the Oldest Living animals - the Blackbird of Cilgwri, the Stag of Rhedynfre, the Owl of Cwm Cawlwyd, the Eagle of Gwernabwy and the Salmon of Lyn Llyw -- Mabon is freed from his mysterious captivity.

Also, the Equinox is the day of the year when the god of light, Lleu Llaw Gyffes is defeated by His rival, Gronw Pebr. The night conquers day. The tales state that the Equinox is the only day which Lleu is vulnerable and the possibility of his defeat exists. Lleu stands on the balance (Autumn Equinox - Libra) with one foot on the goat (Winter Solstice - Capricorn) and the other on the cauldron (Summer Solstice - Cancer). He is betrayed by his wife, Blodeuwedd, the Virgin (Virgo) and transformed into an Eagle (Scorpio).

Lleu's defeat represents not only the sun's dying power, but also the cycle of rebirth, his energy remaining within the grains we have since harvested. An incarnate of the grain spirit was thought to specifically reside within the last stalk, which is thought to be traditionally dressed in fine clothes and decorations, or possibly woven into a man-shaped form. This symbolic decoration was then harvested and carried from the field to be burned with rejoicing for the spirits release and the sun's upcoming rebirth.”

Another blessing:  have been finding sigils I can embroider – here are two for Shamash:  the rayed sun in a circle (top of the page), and this one, with Shamash in the circular center of a winged bird – looking almost Egyptian ... if you ignore the heavy beard.  But when you consider that Shamash was the God of Justice ... and that Maat was the principle of morality and justice, often portrayed as a winged goddess ... the similarities between the two is rather striking.

And now ... if I could only find the linen.  Arrgh!

One of my favorite interviews, if only because l'uno e solo burst into such laughter right in the middle of it.  The reason?  They were asked (in Spanish) what words they would use to win a girl's heart.  Gianluca probably won this competition hands down with his reply:

"Good night, my love, you are the most beautiful dream that I have ever had in my life, a dream that I wish I will never wake up from."  The interviewer - who managed to look like she was both swooning and trying to hold herself together until she could get to the nearest bathroom  - seemed completely smitten with Gianluca, which brings us to Piero, who figured he'd already lost the competition, so why not win over the audience with the gift of laughter?  His contribution?  First in Italian, then in Spanish:

"Good morning, my love, please hurry up, because at 8.00 we have to leave!" .

Which explains all of the laughter.

Ignazio's by the way, was  "If you were music, I would sing and play you all day."

Translations, by the way, are not mine - they were on YouTube, along with the video.  Piero's genuine and delightful laughter needs no translation - I love it when he laughs like that: