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Bardic Contest IV
Nov 2004 to May 2005

Contest judge is mikerdna@hotmail.com Rules at bottom of page

 Contestants & Salvo # Chart

Steve Emenhiser #1, 2, 3, 8
George Verges #1
Pat Haneke #1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Mike Scharding #1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Anonymous, #2
Lydia Van DeGrift #2
Brian Jeffries #2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. 11
Eric Powers #3, 5, 9, 11
Anonymous of Colorado #4
Mike Pingleton #6
Anonymous of Alabama #7, 10, 12
Radaiken #9
Shane Sayler #12
Drud from Texas #12


The following entries are representative of the submitter's views.
They do not represent those of the web-master, the RDNA or anyone else, not even the composer, perhaps.

Bardic Salvo #12, April 11th, 2005

Nineteen Going on Twenty Years

By Pat, Akita Grove
Dec 2004, For the Public Domain
Originally "Sixteen going on Seventeen" by Rogers and Hamerstein. I thought the original was bordering on patronizingly sexist, but after more reflection, perhaps the original authors were poking fun at her suitor's ability to guide her at his own tender age?
Click or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://www.julie-andrews.net/tsom/Midi/sixteen.mid

You wait, young Druid, in a remote cave
for sun to shine his light in
You mind, young Druid, is a road to pave
This journey's yours to begin.

to begin...

Schooled for nineteen going on twenty years
Druid, it's time to think
Better be wise, be canny, take advice
Druid, you're on the brink

Trained for nineteen going on twenty years
Chieftains in halls so grand
Eager your lords with gems and swords
Offer you gold and land.

Formally now prepared are you to face this world of men
Lettered and taught and skilled are
Of things beyond their ken

You'll need something older and wiser
Guiding you what to do,
Gods by hundreds going on thousands
They'll take care of you!

Taught for nineteen going on twenty years
I know I'm still naive
Sly rogues I meet may tempt me to cheat
And doubt all that I believe

Drilled for nineteen going on twenty years
Invested with all our lore
Resplendent histories, ways to thwart pixies,
Tales of love, truth and yore.

Formally now prepared am I to face this world of men
Lettered and taught and skilled am I
Of things beyond their ken

I need something older and wiser
Guiding me what to do,
Gods by hundreds going on thousands
They'll show me what's true!

[Dancing music for a minute or two]

No Title # 26

By Shane Saylor, Digitalis Grove
March 24 2005

The sledgehammer pounds the wall repeatedly. The sound echoes in my ears. As the hammer breaks through, through the wall of my skull, I sigh with relief.

The drums of misery stop beating as the pressure is relieved. I wrap myself in a blanket of darkness as I cry out to Orpheus to loll me to sleep with his lyre.

The throbbing of my head sets the tune for the nightmares. They want in my head. No dream catcher will stop them tonight. The misery of the throbbing makes them strong.

Aspirin will lessen the affect. But only for a while. Meanwhile, the nightmares have a party in my head. They dance in step with the throbbing. Waves of nausea come. With the nausea, I feel as if I'm on a boat with a rough sea beneath the keel. I am unable to keep my footing as the boat sways back and forth and back again.

I wake to a shining sun and to find myself covered in my own warm, sticky and almost dried vomit. Migraines. I hate the damn things.

Praying Outside

By Mike, DJ of DC Grove
March 2005, For the Public Domain
Originally "Staying Alive" By BeeGees
Click or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://www.beegeesoso.com/midi/StayinAlive2.mid

SHORT MUSIC INTRO - 10 sec.

VERSE
Well, you tell by the way I go on walks
I'm Mom Nature's man, I soar with hawks
My ways proud and bonfires warm
I've been drifting around since I was born

CHORUS
And now it's all right, it's O.K.
Though you may pray some other way.
You should try to understand
The ancient cycles' effect on man.
I hope that you'll be another
Proud Druid of the Mother.
We're praying outside
praying outside.
Feel the mountains waking
And the forests shakin'
And we're praying outside, praying outside
R. - D. - N. - A
Praying outside
Praying outside
R. - D. - N. - A
Praying out--side

VERSE
Well now, I've been low and I've been high
And if I don't know well then I'll just ask why.
Got the wings of eagles at my call
I'm a Nature man, winter spring summer fall.

CHORUS You know it's all right, it's O.K.
I know this is another way.
You should try to understand
The ancient cycles' effect on man.
I hope that you'll be another
Proud Druid of the Mother.
We're praying outside
Praying outside.
Feel the mountains waking
And the forests shakin'
And we're praying outside, praying outside
R. - D. - N. - A
Praying outside
Praying outside
R. - D. - N. - A
Praying out--side

INTERLUDE:
Life is everywhere.
Somebody join me.
Somebody join me, yeah.
Life is everywhere.
Somebody join me, yeah.
Praying outside.

VERSE
Well, you might think I've gone wild, quite insane.
I've drunk wisdom deep and can't abstain.
Fits my needs, I found my groove
Will I stay a Druid? Time will prove.

CHORUS
And now it's all right, it's O.K.
And you may pray some other way.
You should try to understand
The ancient cycles' effect on man.
I hope that you'll be another
Proud Druid of the Mother.
We're praying outside
Praying outside.
Feel the mountains waking
And the forests shakin'
And we're praying outside
Praying outside
R. - D. - N. - A
Praying outside
Praying outside
R. - D. - N. - A.
Praying out--side

INTERLUDE:
Life is everywhere.
Somebody join me.
Somebody join me, yeah.
Life is everywhere.
Somebody join me, yeah.
Praying outside.

INTERLUDE:
Life is everywhere.
Somebody join me.
Somebody join me, yeah.
Life is everywhere.
Somebody join me, yeah.
Praying outside.

[Etc. Dance until the music runs outin a few minutes]

Quiet awakening

By EMB (druidfromtexas)
3/29/05

the dreary days
come to a quiet end
as spring awakes
short sunless days
are replaced
by long golden ones
silent snow covered fields
melt away and bring
bird song and green leaves
the cold long Winter
yields its hold
to Spring in her glory

I Wanna Rock

By Anonymous of Alabama
March 2005, For the Public Domain
Original with same title by Twisted Sister, 1982
Click on the link, then on tiny green button next to "I Wanna Rock" which will give you the music to the chorus and first verse, which will play on Windows Media Player and a minute of downloading.
Click or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://www.mp3.com/tracks/5571343/dl_streams.html

I wanna rock! (Rock)
I wanna rock! (Rock)
I want this rock! (Rock)
I wanna rock! (Rock)

Just use wood they say,
Well all I got to say to them is time again I say, "No!"
No! No, No, No, No, No!
Tell me choose light stuff
Well, all I got to say to them when they tell me choose light stuff, I say, "No!"
No! No, No, No, No, No!
So, if you ask me why I like hauling the big stones
There's only one thing I can say to you

I wanna rock! (Rock)
I wanna rock! (Rock)
I want this rock! (Rock)
I wanna rock! (Rock)

There's a feelin' that
I get from nothin' else and there ain't nothin' in the world
That lasts so long! Long! Long, long long, long!
Stores the power up
I've prepared for so long so I could have my very own dolmen, so Let's pull!
Pull! Pull, pull, pull, pull, pull!
When it's this big I feel the backpains shootin' through me
There's nothin' else that I would rather do!

I wanna rock! (Rock)
I wanna rock! (Rock)
I want this rock! (Rock)
I wanna rock! (Rock)

Bardic Salvo #11, March 25th, 2005

Separate Ways

By Pat, Akita Grove
Feb 2004, For the Public Domain
Originally "Separate Ways" By Journey
You cannot click the music address.
Plug the address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://www.midi4u.com/artists/j/journey/Separate_Ways.mid

INTRO SPOKEN POEM:
For awhile we danced amongst the birch
Praying by the olden ways together
Now they've pulled you back to that church
And we'll not see again each other.

(Start the music, listen to start-up music 10 sec)

Here we stand
Worlds apart, hearts broken in two, two, two
Sleepless nights
Hallowed ground
They're preaching to you, you, you

(Verse with echoes)

Feelin' that it's gone
Can't change your mind
If we canft go on
To survive their chides love now hides

CHORUS
Someday Truth will find you
Break those chains that bind you
One night will remind you
How we worshipped
And went our separate ways
If they ever hurt you
True ways won't desert you
You know I still love you
Though we worshipped
And went our separate ways

Burning times
Caught between confusions and pain, pain, pain
Distant prize
Promises once made were in vain, vain, vain

If you must go, I wish you luck
You'll never walk alone
Take care my dear
Miss you friend

(chorus thrice)

(Music Interspersed)

(chorus)

(Music interspersed)

(chorus)

(music)

Druidry Snapped the Chains of Dogma

By Mike, DC Grove
Feb 2005, For the Public Domain
Originally "Video Killed the Radio Star " By Buggles 1980
(which was the first video broadcast on MTV) The tune is not
very stable or easy to follow if you haven't heard the original,
as the three line verses are spoken quickly and monotonicly,
but the "oh-a-oh"s and chorus is truly catchy for this one-hit wonder band.
Click or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://www.kingeider.net/bugglesvideo.mid
http://www.winhelp.dk/music/vidkill.mid

(10 seconds followed by a quick beat track that is the first verse)

I heard you hit the campus back in Sixty Three
Staying awake intent at learning from the trees
If I was young, it did stop me being free

Oh-a-oh

You took the credit for that revoke chapel rule
Rewritten by students and used beyond the school
and now I understand the usage of those tools

Oh-a-oh
We are your children
oh-a-oh
What do I tell them?
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Freedom came and broke their hold

oh-a-a-a oh

And now we seek new paths cloaked in mystery
We know so little and have such short history
But the largest door needs only a tiny key

oh- a-oh
I took my first steps
oh- a- oh
Those were my best steps
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
If these paths prove too bizarre
We can't lose heart, we've gone too far

oh-a-aho-oh,
oh-a-aho oh

(Tinkle and synthesizer Music)

Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
If these paths prove too bizarre
We can't lose heart we've gone too far
Freedom came and broke their hold
Where it leads we'll watch unfold

I am the earth-mother's child
I know secrets tame and wild

Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
Druidry snapped the chains of dogma

Druidry snapped the chains of dogma
(I am the earth-mother's child)

(Lots of quiet rising and falling waves of music)

Brew of Inspiration

By Brian Jeffries

On a midwinter's day Cerridwen did command
That a fire be set for a brew she had planned
And a cauldron be placed as the flames crackled bright
Then young Gwion was summoned, as day turned to night
The queen bade him come, and she set him a'stirring
With the planets aligned and a dark moon occuring
And as he was stirring, she spoke words of power
While tossing in herbs picked at just the right hour
For any to taste it she strictly forbade
In a year and a day the strange brew would be made

A year did then pass with Earth's circuit sojurned
When with drops from the cauldron, young Gwion was burned
Magically giving him vision anew
Drawing his eyes to the spiralling brew
In the dark vortex his eyes made to see
The terrible knowledge of what is to be
The ways of all past present future creation
He saw in the eye of that spiral rotation
At last he was able to draw a deep breath
And he knew that the dark queen was plotting his death
By the light of the moon on that mid-winter's night
Young Gwion stole softly to make good his flight

Cerridwen sniffed the air and turned into a hag
And chased the boy swiftly from valley to crag
Through power of cauldron, he changed to a hare
Then she to a greyhound, for him to beware
In a river he leaped, in the form of a fish
The queen, to an otter, to feed was her wish
He changed to a bird, and he fluttered away
Then she to a falcon, upon him to prey
He turned to a grain on the threshing room floor
As a black hen she ate him-the chase was no more

To the form of the queen, Cerridwen then returned
And found herself pregnant with the life she had spurned
"This child's life is forfeit!", she said with a vow
And in time bore a boy with a radiant brow
Upon him she gazed, and such beauty had he
His life she then spared, casting him in the sea
That fine day he voyaged, in a large bag of leather
To Cardigan Bay, by a change in the weather
A prince was there fishing alongside a weir
He netted the bag as the waves brought it near
"A child!", cried Prince Elphin, of the fine boy within
"He must have a name. It shall be-Taliesin"

Minnesota Druids

By Eric Powers, Boston Grove
Feb 2005, For the Public Domain
Originally "California Girls"
Click or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://www.garyrog.50megs.com/midi/californiagirls.mid

Well east coast Druids are hip
I really dig their stylish wares
And the southern Druids with the flak they take
I'm impressed that they're even there

The Southwest's deserts' druids
Have the gift of second sight
And the Montreal Druids with the fires they burn
They keep their grovemates warm at night

I wish they all could be Minnesota
I wish they all could be Minnesota
I wish they all could be Minnesota Druids

The west coast has the sunshine
All year worship keeps them tanned
I love those Zen Druids on pacific island
Groves of palm trees in the sand

I been all around this great big world
And I seen all kinds of Groves
Yeah, but I couldn't wait, those 4 seasons are great,
To meet the coldest Druids in the world

I wish they all could be Minnesota
I wish they all could be Minnesota
I wish they all could be Minneosta Druids

I wish they all could be Minnesota
(Druids, Druids, Druids yeah I dig the)
I wish they all could be Minnesota
(Druids, Druids, Druids yeah I dig the)
I wish they all could be Minnesota
(Druids, Druids, Druids yeah I dig the)
I wish they all could be Minnesota
(Druids, Druids, Druids yeah I dig the)

I am a Nature Eclectic

By mike, DC Grove
Feb 2005, For the Public Domain
Based on "I sing the body electric" from the movie "Fame"
Click or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://www.ilovehou.com/twonicknames/gifsite/midi2/bodyelectric.mid

I am a nature eclectic
I celebrate Her beauty so grand
I long for my own communion, where I become one with the land!
And I'll learn from the old ones
I'll learn from the wise
And I'll gaze deep in fires
View thirty thousand skies
and in time, and in time, we'll cherish this prize

I am a nature eclectic
I glory in the web of rebirth
Rejoicing the year's rotation
Heed words of spirits in the earth.

I'll learn from the wise
And I'll gaze deep in fires
View thirty thousand skies
and in time,
and in time,
we'll cherish this prize

We are the land's stewards now
And we say what dies
And in time
And in time
We will cherish this prize.

Bardic Salvo #10, March 1st, 2005

.

.

Veggier Than Thou

By Brian Jeffries 1994
[I've been a fish-eatin' vegetarian for 30 years]

How can you eat your protein if it's coming from a cow?
Carnivores are sinners, and I'm veggier than thou
Source of true enlightenment must come from what you eat
I'm feeling kinda holy, 'cause I never do eat meat
Never mind the consequence of things I say or do
I've got to be superior, I'm veggier than you

Any Way You Like It

By Pat, Akita Grove
Feb 2004, For the Public Domain
Originally "Any Way You Want It" By Journey
Click or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://users.cis.net/sammy/journey.htm

Any way you like it
That's the way you do it
Any way you like it

She loves to laugh
She loves to sing
She does everything
She loves the globe
She loves the grove
She loves the livin' beings

Ooh, all night, all night
Oh, moon is bright
So do it right, do it right
Ooh, baby, do it right

Oh, she said,
Any way you like it
That's the way you do it
Any way you like it
She said, any way you like it
That's the way you do it
Any way you like it

I was alone
I never knew
What old gods could do
Ooh, then we danced
Then we sang
About the livin' beings

Ooh, all night, all night
Oh, moon is bright
So do it right, do it right
Ooh, baby, do it right

Oh, she said,
Any way you like it
Thatfs the way you do it
Any way you like it
She said, any way you like it
That's the way you do it
Any way you like it

[Saxophone Solo and repeat some earlier verses.]

Fight for your Right to not Pray

By Anonymous from Alabama
Feb 2005, For the Public Domain
Based on "Fight for Your Right to Party" by Beastie Boys
Click link or copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music: http://209.197.86.65/20041007/rap/beastieboys/Fight_For_Your_Right_To.mid

or at http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/kentish/116/midi/fight_for_your_right_to_party.mid

*APOLOGIES IN ADVANCE FOR LYRICS*

[Intro Music, words monotonic enthusiastic shouting]

You wake up late for church - man you don't wanna go [music riff]
You ask you mom, "Please?" - but she still says, "No!"
You refused those pledges - but it just don't work
And your teacher tells the class that you're some kind of jerk

(chorus) You gotta fight -- for your right -- to not pray

You're min'ster heard you're screwing - and he said, "No way!"
That hypocrite - stretches taffy twice a day
Man, living in the south is such a drag
Heaven can't help you if they think you're a fag (Busted!)

(repeat chorus)

Don't step out of this house if my true faith you're gonna refuse
I'll kick you out of my home is you don't change those views
Your mom busted in and said, "What's that book?"
Aw, mom don't be hating - my way's off the hook!

(repeat chorus)

FIRE OF COUNCIL

By Brian Jeffires Oct 2004

Born of a spark
Tended with care
Fire of council
Make us aware

Of ancestral spirits
Of councils of old
You bring forth our spirits
From out of the cold

Our circle has gathered
Our eyes on your coals
Fire of council
Inspire our souls

Wise be our words
Chosen with care
With open heart spoken
Our council to share

May we carry a spark
When we all go our ways
Of this fire of council
For the rest of our days

When a Man Builds an Altar

By Mike, DC Grove
Mar 2005, For the Public Domain
Based on "When a Man Loves a Woman" by Percy Sledge
Click link of copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music: http://www.garyrog.50megs.com/midi/whenamanlovesawoman.mid
Dedicated to Fisher, Nelson, Cherniack & Frangquist and all those other folks into Rolling Stones. Thanks to Sam for showing me his inspiring altar back in 1993.

[Intro music]

When a man build an altar
Can't keep his mind on nothin' else
He'll search the woods
Use the best rocks he's found
If it is cracked, he won't use it
Gods brook no such stuff
Show it proud to his best friends
And he guards its grounds.

When a man builds an altar
Sheds his sweat, blood and tears
Trying to reach out to what he needs
He'd give up all his comforts
And struggle in the rain
It They said that's the way
It ought to be

When a man builds an altar
He gives it everything in his heart (yeah)
Trying to reach out
To that precious world
Oh Gods, please show me your ways

When a man builds an altar
Deep down in his soul
He can mirror that mystery
If his hard efforts make him a fool
He's the last one to care
Locked hearts quest for the key.

Yes, when a man builds an altar
I know exactly how he feels
'Cause O Gods, above, around
I am that man
When a man builds an altar.

[Closing Music- scatting – humming.]

Bardic Salvo #9, Feb 20th, 2005

.

.

Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Kilt and Feathered Beanie

By Eric Powers
Aug 2004, For the Public Domain
Based on "Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" from Abba
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/kentish/116/midi/yellow_polka_dot_bikini.mid
Original Lyrics & music at http://www.minibite.com/oldies/itsybitsy.htm

[SADLY SPOKEN INTRO POEM's TWO VERSES:]
The father's dying wish to his beloved son
Was to wear his kilt bequeathed from his grandfather
And carry on the hoary Scottish male tradition
But the burly grandson was by far much larger.

So the grandson accepted the ancient tartan pladdie
And planned to wear it at the next high school ball
To show his pride as a true highland laddie
Unfortunately, his fine diet made him too tall.

[START MUSIC IN SEPARATE WINDOW]

He was afraid to come out of the coatroom
He was as nervous as he could be
He was afraid to come out of the coatroom
He was afraid that somebody would see

One, two, three, four, tell the people what he wore

It was an itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow kilt and feathered beanie
That he wore for the first time today
An itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow kilt and feathered beanie
So in the coatroom he wanted to stay

Two, three, four, stick around we'll tell you more

He was afraid the boys would all snicker
And from the window the winds blew quite strong
He was afraid the boys would all snicker
And the girls would talk about it for long

Two, three, four, tell the people what he wore

It was an itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow kilt and feathered beanie
That he wore for the first time today
An itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow kilt and feathered beanie
Oh, to be ignored, he started to pray

Two, three, four, stick around we'll tell you more

Now he is afraid to come out on the dance floor
And I wonder what he's gonna do
Now he is afraid to come out on the dance floor
A cute girl winked and his "problem" just grew.

Two, three, four, tell the people what he wore

It was an itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow kilt and feathered beanie
That he wore for the first time today
An itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow kilt and feathered beanie
So behind a table he wanted to stay

(From the coatroom to the banquet)
(From the banquet to the dance floor)
(From the dance floor to his retreat)
Yes, there is prob'ly more

Endless repetition of chorus music.

SACRED GROVE

By Brian Jeffries
Nov 2004

Twisted and split and blasted by bolts
Yet stately serene grow the dark sacred oaks
On top and defiant of wind and of weather
Their deep diving roots hold the mountain together

Moonbridge

By Brian Jeffries
Nov 2004

I walk in the dreamtime
Without and within
'Cross a moonbridge I wander
Forget who I've been
I behold then the Muse
Mesmerized I draw near
My vision is vibrant
My thoughts become clear

Bringing back visions
To our world so mundane
Dilutes them with pleasure
Dilutes them with pain
Perceived through a mist
If remembered at all
A life can be lived
Just to follow the call
To walk in the dreamtime
Without and within
'Cross a moonbridge to wander
Forget who you've been

Dimestore Druid

By Mike, DC Grove
Feb 2005, For the Public Domain
Based on "Rhinestone Cowboy" by Larry Weiss
P please copy and plug address directly into a new browser window for music:
http://ynucc.yeungnam.ac.kr/~bwlee/midi/rhinest.mid
Dedicated to a fellow Druid who is dedicated to a frugal life in ecological service. May she never falter in her struggle.

I've been walkin' these woods so long
Singin' their same old songs
I know every rock on these dirty foot trails of the forest
Where cycle's the name of the game
And my cares get washed away like the snow and the rain
There's been a load of thrift savin'
For the sake of my haven
But I'm gonna live like I always wanted to be.

Like a dimestore Druid
Eking out a plain life in a wealth-centered society
Like a dimestore Druid
Eating beans and taters in places folks will rarely see
And my friends howlin' up at the moon.

Well, I really don't mind the rain
I just smile and push past the pain
But you're down when you're travelin' the path that's takin' the slow way
And I hear of the things other's do
With their fancy grimoires but when outdoors they haven't got a clue
How will they make a difference
If they don't go the distance
Yet we gotta do what our roles are decided to be.

Like a dimestore Druid
Eking out a plain life in a wealth-centered society
Like a dimestore Druid
Eating beans and taters in places folks will rarely see
And my friends howlin' up at the moon.

Like a dimestore Druid
Getting rid of the things that are soul-sapping, just for show

Dimestore Druid
Learning lore and wisdom from creatures you may never know

As Ravens Cry

By Radaiken@aol.com
Dec 2004, For the Public Domain

No not again: As ravens cry in rain

    The Celtic Book of Days spells out our year
    As Solstice and the Equinox appear
With Lughnasadh, Beltran, Imbolc, Samhain

.

Pleiades begin to rise

    Time passes in a moment as we bow
    Before God's angels in the after glow
Of wintry starry skies and raise our eyes

.

    No not again

.

I only want to see

    Once more a fish, a hare, a grain of wheat
    As messangers of God I fear repeat
The raven's cry in rain bewitchingly

.

    No not again

Don't Stop Believin'

By Pat Haneke
April 2004, For the Public Domain
Based on "Donft Stop Believin'" from Journey
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
http://themidiuniverse.virtualave.net/midi/Journey-Dont_Stop_Believin.mid

(opening Music 10 sec)

Just a small town girl, livin' on a lonely lane
She sought the midnight path dancin' in the air
Just a city boy, born and raised in the bible belt
He took the midnight path drummin' without care

(whirly Music)

A Druid in a misty verdant grove
The smell of mead, shy betrothed,
With a vow they can share their lives
It goes on and on and on and on

CHORUS Strangers seeking, up and down the stony roads
Their shadows searching in the night
Moonlight people, leaving just to find their home
Hidden, somehow in the night

(short music)

Working hard to climb the hills,
other folks escape by pills,
Payin' anything to fight their fate,
Just one more hour
Some will learn, some will choose
Some will never see the clues
Oh, the cycles never end
It goes on and on and on and on

(chorus)

(Instrumental)

Don't stop believin' Hearken to that feelin' etc.

Moonlight people

Bardic Salvo #8, Feb 9th, 2005

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Iceni Queen

By Pat Haneke
Feb 2004, For the Public Domain
Based on "Dancing Queen" from Abba
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.oocities.org/SunsetStrip/Towers/8245/dncqueen.mid
Read the historical story.

Intro music

You can fight, you can reave, wielding the sword that cleaves
See that fire, hear Rome's screams, praising the Iceni Queen

Year sixty, and Prasutagus dies
Bequeathed all to Rome, but Nero lies
Called to play a regent's role, taking everything
They came in and ruled like a king

Nobody could stand those guys
Trust is gone, a betrayed people cries
Without care for fealty, everything is gone
You're whipped, your people famished
And then your girls ravished..

You were the Iceni Queen, strong and lean, your match never seen
Iceni Queen, feel the beat of the war machine (oh, yeah!)
You can fight, you can reave, wielding the sword that cleaves
See that fire, hear Rome's screams, praising the Iceni Queen

You're a razer, you march at dawn
Leave them burning and then you're gone
Looking out for another, any town will do
You're in the mood for vengeance
And when you get the chance...

You were the Iceni Queen, strong and lean, your match never seen
Iceni Queen, feel the beat of the war machine (oh, yeah!)
You can fight, you can reave, wielding the sword that cleaves
See that fire, hear Rome's screams, praising the Iceni Queen

Praising the Iceni Queen

The Voice Within

By Steven Emenhiser age 16, a short poem

"Inside...
there lies an inspiration,
a force that we call truth
the experience of a lifetime,
can be filled by the voice within
only by listening to your heart
only by letting your spirit go
may you hear the voice within..."

Nature's Call

By Steven Emenhiser, age 16
Notes: a song I wrote while camping!!!

(verse)
I step outside and catch a breath of air
frost on the ground telling me it's a new day
how can this be real, such a beauty, it's like a dream
it's so wonderfull, the spirit of the tree's
it's so briliant the wisdom of the sky's
I walk opon the beach and sing this song
all the spirits calling opon my voice
asking me to go on and on, and spread the dream
as I stand tall, and watch them dance around me
I can feel their hearts within my soul screaming...

(chorus)
As I take a bow, to the gods looking down
as I see such a world, in the goddess's arms
the lessons to be learned from within the ground
her spirit spread plant by plant opon our farms
Her voice calls to me, her voice calls to me...

(verse)
Walking across the open plain
the clouded sky stands strong above me
looking through the forest you can hear the call
calling you in, making you feel at home
and when times get hard, and you feel down
when you begin to fade into the darkness,
Brighid's flame will keep you alive
the goddess within will heal your spirit
holding your inner truth, making yourself grow
to connect with the divinity within us all,
a grow closer with each other for eternity

(chorus)
As I take a bow, to the gods looking down
as I see such a world, in the goddess's arms
the lessons to be learned from within the ground
her spirit spread plant by plant opon our farms
Her voice calls to me, her voice calls to me...

(verse)
As I look out above,
to the brightest stars in the sky
I can feel thier wisdom being spread on me
watching my path as I fullfill my dreams
days go by, and I center open myself to them
knowing I can go on, knowing I am alive
the inspiration, the fire of the ancient bards,
are in all of our hearts
are in all of our hands...

Smoke on the Altar

By Mike, DC Grove
February 2005, For the Public Domain
Based on "Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
http://www.themathlab.com/music/smkwater.mid

(25 second Helicopter intro and monotonous unforgettable riff, which also appears in long instrumentals between verses too. There are many strange versions out there, but this tune kind of fits the original lyrics. Adapt the words as necessary)

They all came out of Carleton
On the Lake Lyman's shoreline
To take up cause with a menace
They chose whiskey not wine.
Frangquist, Fisher and Nelson
Were the best rebels around
'gainst some stupid religious rules
Burned the leaves on sacred ground
Smoke on the altar, fire in the mind. (x2 in some versions)

They burned down the chapel rule
It died, to farce it yields
Norman & Dave was running the new grove
Pulling kids out to fields
When their stay was over
They had to find another place
Dogma's reign was running out
This journey's quick but not a race
Smoke on the altar, fire in the mind

We ended up over in Berkeley
It was kooky, dry and hot
And others rolling the stones and teaching folks
What Druids are and aren't
With a few ash poles and a few blankets
We made a place to sweat
No matter what we get out of this
I know we'll never forget
Smoke on the altar, fire in the mind

THE DANCE OF THE WIND AND THE WAVE

by Brian Jeffries 2004

Daughter of the Sun and Earth
Scirocco has been given birth
Libya's dunes feel her growing desire
Whose shapeshifting sands are the fuel of her fire
She whirls on so lightly down through the Sudan
To the Ivory Coast and Liberia's span

There as two passionate lovers they meet
The white-capped Poseidon embraces her feet
Above them are flying her bright cirrus tresses
Far down below his blue face she caresses
God of the sea and her most willing slave
He joins in the dance of the wind and the wave

Westward she flies - a scirocco no longer
Unfurling her beauty her love growing stronger
The Lesser Antilles receives her clear eye
She spins a pirouette from the sea to the sky
Seeking a path for her amorous quest
With great pomp and majesty she waltzes northwest

Yes, I call her the Dancer - the one I long for
Her ranks roll in rhythm upon the wild shore
Siren's sweet singing - I too am the slave
For I must dance the dance of the wind and the wave
My dance is my prayer in our aqueous bliss
To the whirling white Goddess - please spare me death's kiss

Bardic Salvo #7, January 30th, 2005

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The Mountain

by Emmon Bodfish, 1982

From the thick grass
On the Mountain
I see this will be a
Rich year.
The last two
Were poor years.
And no amount of worry
Or effort of the will
Will make any difference.

I choose to pick and eat
This wild lettuce
And not that one.
How random
it is: (Death)
Without any connection
To the moral character
Of either herb.

NO BLAME, then
when Nature gathers me.

It is always cold
On the Mountain,
Not just this year.
Jagged scarps, forever fogged in.
Ferns in the dark gorges
Steep ravines
Unimaginably rugged...

I am afraid,
If I settle long
On Messeur Mountain,
I would (will) not go back.

SOMEWHERE OVER IN CARLETON

By Mike, DC Grove
January 2005, For the Public Domain
Based on "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.mikesmidi.bravepages.com/somewhereovertherainbow.mid

Somewhere over in Carleton
Way up North
There's a Grove that I heard of
Most sacred on the Earth.

Somewhere over in Carleton
Skies are blue
And the ways that you dare to try
Really do prove true

Some day I'll vigil neath the stars
And mount the hill where doubts are far behind me
Where wise thoughts scatter like soft rain drops
Away upon the burr-oak tops
That's where you'll find me

Somewhere over in Carleton
Blackbirds fly
Birds fly over all fences
Why then, oh why can't I?

Some day I'll vigil neath the stars
And mount the hill where doubts are far behind me
Where wise thoughts scatter like soft rain drops
Away upon the burr-oak tops
That's where you'll find me

Somewhere over in Carleton
Blackbirds fly
Birds fly over all fences
Why then, oh why can't I?

If witty old black birds fly
Beyond the fences
Why, oh why can't I?

THE STONES OF NEW GRANGE

By Brian Jeffries
October 2004

A stone was picked up
From the bed of the Boyne
Borne to the top
Of the hill of Newgrange
There it was hewn
By the will of the old ones
Put in its place
With reverent hands

The goddess of rivers
Made time move along
And over her stones
She sang her fair song
The god in the sky
Made the slow seasons change
And brought the bright ray
Through the stones of Newgrange

Souls of the ancients
Reside in the mound
Await the creator
Beneath sacred ground
May all in the chamber
Be blessed by the sight
Of midwinter majesty
Filled with the light

THE DREAM of BRUGH na BOINNE

By Brian Jeffries
October 2004

It came to me, a waking dream
The dream, a river valley scene

An Irish hill, a special place
Where cosmic clockwork measures time
And Boann's sacred waters race
Where poets go to seek their rhyme

A room of stone where souls await
Mid-winter skies are dawning clear
The Lord of Light will cast their fate
The promise of another year

The Pairing

by Anonymous of Alabama
January 2005 For the Public Domain

Weaving together a new blazed path
Unending, winding, such is life's knot
Harmonizing the harsh duality
Both what is and what's not.
You flow through my internal waters
Deep in my blood out to my snot
Secure after many long cycles
Death or change, one fears nought

All Out There

By Pat Haneke, Akita Grove
Original was "All Right Now" written
Written by Aerosmith artists, A. Fraser / P. Rodgers
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.rehler.com/sound/All_Right_Now.mid

There She stood in the wood
Smiling from her eyes in her hood
I said hey which faith's best?
Now maybe laddie
Maybe you're in need of a quest?

I said slow down where should I start?
I need to prepare ere I depart
She said by mighty Jove
Be e'er ready to leave this grove!

All out there
The truth is all out there
All out there
The truth is all out there

I've been around to strange sites
Heard deep things and done new rites
I can search about 'til I'm lame
But I'll never know her true name.

When I came back grove & I shaped
I felt things strong, and nothing's aped
All the truth out there I sought to find
Had always been there, down in my mind.

All out there
The truth is all out there
All in here
The truth is all in here
All out there
The truth is all out there
All in here
The truth is all in here

Bardic Salvo #6, January 10th, 2005

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Free Deer

By Pat Haneke, Akita Grove
To the tune of Free Bird
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.dixienet.org/files/midi/freebird.mid

If I leave here tomorrow
Would you still recognize me?
For I must be travelling on, now,
'cause there's too many faiths I've got to see.

But, if I stayed here with your Church,
Things just couldn't be the same.
'cause Ifm as free as a deer now,
And this deer you can not change.
-Lord knows, I can't change back.

Bye, bye, I've learned some deep things
Though your system I can't claim.
But please don't take it badly,
'cause Lord knows it's been arranged.
But, if I stayed here with your Church
-Things just couldn't be the same.

Cause I'm as free as a deer now,
And this deer you'll never change.
And this deer you can not change.
Lord knows, I can't change back.
-Lord help me, I can't change back.

Mairi

By Mike, DC Grove
To the tune of "Layla" by Eric Clapton
Dedicated to Mairi Ceolmhor, wherever you are
Dang, but I could listen to that guitar all day!
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.ettnet.se/~tradare/mid/layla.mid

What'll you do when you get lonely
And you just wanna go outside?
You've been cooped up and chained much too long.
You know it's time for a wild ride.

CHORUS:
Mairi, [guitar riff] you've gotta go to the trees.
Mairi, [guitar riff] it's blowing in the breeze.
Mairi, [guitar riff] sister won't you ease that worried mind?

I tried to give you consolation
But I just gave you more questions.
Like a fool, you fell in love with it,
Turned your whole world upside down.

CHORUS

Let's make the best of your situation
It seems crazy but not insane.
Please don't say you'll never find a way
Don't tell me that this search's in vain.

CHORUS

CHORUS

Ogham for October

By Mike Pinglton, October 2004

ash for the arrow, yew for the bow
oak for the staff and elm in the fire.
beech for the waysign, birch in the boat
whistles of willow, pine for the pyre.

rowan to carry, blackthorn for hedgerow
birch for the broomstick, elder for wine.
ash for the ocean and hazel for wands
oak is for mistletoe, holly for kine.

waste not the heartwood;
full craft in things made.
praise all the woodland;
give thanks for the shade.

THE DRUID WITHIN [ lyrics]

By Byran Jeffries

Youthful sun beckons a new season's shoots
Winter leaves carpet the old oak tree's roots

Song of the Earth flowing upward in prayer
Bass note of thunder rolls down through the air
Melody strong let the new day begin
A summoning call to the druid within
A summoning call to the druid within

Old oaks and thunder bestir memories
Of dark forests ancient with tall sacred trees
Acorns and seedlings are what they have been
The groves will return like the druid within
The groves will return like the druid within

Sylvan cathedral, a sacrifice burns
In thanks to Earth spirits as the great year wheel turns
Hooded forms chanting as magic begins
To call 'cross the ages to the druid within
To call 'cross the ages to the druid within

Bardic Salvo #5, January 1st, 2005

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RESOULUTION

By Brain Jeffries, December 2004
To the tune of REVOLUTION by the Beatles
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://209.197.86.65/20041007/rock/beatles/Revolution1.mid

You say you wanna be a dru-i-id, w-e-el you kno-o-ow
We'd all love to help the world
You say you wanna change the futu-ure, we-e-el you kno-o-ow
Mother Nature, she's our gir-r-rl
But if you go thinking the Earth should be bought and sold
All I can tell you is brother just keep your gold

Don't you know it's gonna be - alright
Don't you know it's gonna be - alright
Don't you know it's gonna be - alright

We are an ancient institution, we-e-el you kno-o-ow
Our future's looking bright
And if you make a resolution, we-e-el you kno-o-ow
It might just turn out right
And like an oak tree, we'll care for the Earth and Sky
By Sun and by Moon and by Goddess we've got to try

Don't you know it's gonna be - alright
Don't you know it's gonna be - alright
Don't you know it's gonna be - alright, alright, alright!E

Wind Beneath my Boughs

By Eric Powers, For the Public Domain, November 2004
Based on "Wind beneath my wings" by Bette Middler
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.oocities.org/ystradband/wings.html

INTRO: Ohhhh, oh, oh, oh, ohhh.

It must have been cold there in the shadows,
To await sunlight on your face.
You were content to sit with me, that's your way.
You always shared what's on your mind.

So I became one with all your glory,
when I came despite the clouds and rain
A beautiful god without a name for so long.
A beautiful balm to soothe my pains.

Did you ever know that you're my idol,
and everything I've made is yours now?
My praise flies higher than an eagle,
for you are the wind beneath the boughs.

It might have appeared to go unnoticed,
but I've got it all here in my heart.
I want you to know I know your truths, of course I know them.
I would be lost here without you.

Did you ever know that you're my idol,
and everything I've made is yours now?
My praise flies higher than an eagle,
for you are the wind beneath the boughs.

Did you ever know that you're my idol,
and everything I've made is yours now?
Oh, and my praise flies higher than an eagle,
for you are the wind beneath the boughs.
'cause you are the wind beneath the boughs.

Oh, the wind beneath the boughs.
You, you, you, you are the wind beneath the boughs.
Blow, blow, blow onwards. You let me float with you.
Oh, you, you, you, the wind beneath the boughs.
Oh, you, you, you, the wind beneath the boughs.
Blow, blow, blow beneath the changing sky,
so pure, I'm just like that clear sky.
Thank you, thank you,
Thank all the gods, the wind beneath the boughs.

Story and Style

By Brain Jeffries, December 2004

I drink from the flowing phenomenal well
My thirst for experience, deep
I hunger for secrets the ages foretell
The secrets that they did not keep

Story and style are written in stone
A burial mound shows the place
The point of an arrow, an altar, a throne
Illuming the ways of our race

To tell about time is the simplest thing
The way of a spiral, an uncoiling spring
From bedrock to capstone, the key is in place
A conscious revival, a memory trace

To those who remember, I leave it with you
Retelling's the way it can last
A crystal portrayal - the best we can do
Inspiring future through past

PROUD DRUIDS

By Mike, For the Public Domain, January 2005
Original Song "Proud Mary" by Clearance Clearwater Revival
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.olsoncomputers.com/prime/MIDIs/Alphabetical/p/Proud_Mary-(Creedence_Clearwater_Revival)-85k.mid
There are different versions and choruses out there.

Left a harsh church in the city,
Grovelin' for the Lord ev'ry night and day,
but I never lost one minute of sleepin',
Worryin' 'bout the things they pushed on me.

CHORUS:
Year's Wheel keep on turnin',
Proud Druids keep on burnin',
Rollin', rollin', rollin' through the seasons.

Took a lot of flak from preachers,
Pumped a lot of stuff down some naive minds,
Thus I never saw the good side of all Nature,
'Till I finished a tour through the faiths of mankind.

CHORUS
Year's Wheel keep on turnin',
Proud Druids keep on burnin',
Rollin', rollin', rollin' through the seasons.

Musical interlude

If you come out to the forest,
Bet you gonna find some things to learn.
You don't have to worry 'cause you have no training,
Union and deliverance are yours to earn.

CHORUS
Year's Wheel keep on turnin',
Proud Druids keep on burnin',
Rollin', rollin', rollin' through the seasons.
Rollin', rollin', rollin' through the seasons.
Rollin', rollin', rollin' through the seasons.

Bardic Salvo #4, December 18th, 2004

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Go Your Own Ways

By Pat Haneke, Akita Grove, April 2004
April 2004, For the Public Domain
Based on “Go Your Own WayEBy REO Speedwagon 1977
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://themidiuniverse.virtualave.net/midi/Fleetwood_Mac-GoYourOwnWay.mid
Or at http://www.jim-inman.com/midi/F/go_your_own_way.mid

Leaving Him
Isn't the easy thing to do
How can I ever change things
That I feel

If I could
Maybe I'd stay in that world
How can I
When I've seen Things for myself.

You can go your own ways
Go your own ways
You can call It
Another new de-I-ty
You can go your own ways
Go your own way

Tell me why
Everything turned around?
Perking up
Workin' it out is all you need to do

If I could
Sister I'd give you answers
Look 'round
Everything's waiting for you

You can go your own ways
Go your own ways
You an call It
Another new de-I-ty
You can go your own ways
Go your own way

Etc

TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE SUN

Parody by Mike Scharding, Order of Belenos
November 2004, For the Public Domain
Original song "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler
With an oh-so spooky cheesy music video.
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.winhelp.dk/music/totalecl.mid
Note the music differs a little from the verses I have below.
http://www.members.tripod.com/midihits99/midi/Total.mid Europop version

Prelude

Come back out, every now and then I get a
little bit lonely since you're never seem to be around
Come back out, Every now and then I get a
little bit tired of fighting off the force of my fears
Come back out, Every now and then I get a
little bit nervous that the best of all the years have gone by
Come back out, Every now and then I get a
little bit terrified and then I see a sign in the skies
Come back out bright sun, Every now and
then I fall in the dark
Come back out bright sun, Every now and
then I fall in the dark!

Come back out, Every now and then I get a
little bit restless and I dream of places wild
Come back out, Every now and then I get a
little bit helpless and I'm shaped like puddy in fate’s hands
Come back out, Every now and then I get a
little bit confused and I don't know how I will ever understand
Come back out, Every now and then I get a
little bit terrified but then I see a sign in the skies
Come back out bright sun, Every now and
then I fall in the dark
Come back out bright sun, Every now and
then I fall in the dark!

And I would wait for you all night
And I'd love you more than ever
And if you'd only brighten my sight
We'll be able to praise forever
And we'll only be doing what's right
Cause we'd rarely be wrong together
We can journey to the end of this line
Your help is like a shadow on me all of the time
I don't know what to do and I'm thrashing in the dark
My soul packed like a powder keg and ready for sparks

I will seek you out tonight
The journey's gonna start tonight
The journey's gonna start tonight
Once upon a time I was falling apart
But now its starting to fall in place.
Alone, little I can do
A total eclipse of the sun
Once upon a time there wasn't light in my life
But now there's time of light and dark
Waiting, I must pray
A total eclipse of the sun

Come back out, bright sun
Come back out, bright sun
Come back out, every now and then I know
you'll never be the One we always wanted you to be
Come back out, every now and then I know
you'll always be the only One who wanted me the way that I am
Come back out, every now and then I know
there's no one in the universe as magical and wondrous as you
Come back out, every now and then I know
there's nothing any better and there's nothing I just couldn't do
Come back out, Every now and
then I fall in the dark
Come back out, bright sun, Every now and
then I fall in the dark

And I would wait for you all night
And I’d love you more than ever
And if you'd only brighten my sight
We'll be able to last forever
And we'll only be doing what's right
Cause we'd rarely be wrong together
We can journey to the end of this line
Your help is like a shadow on me all of the time
I don't know what to do and I'm thrashing in the dark
My soul packed like a powder keg and ready for sparks

I will seek you out tonight
The journey's gonna start tonight
The journey's gonna start tonight
Once upon a time I was falling apart
But now its starting to fall in place.
Alone, little I can do
A total eclipse of the sun
Once upon a time there wasn't light in my life
But now there's time of light and dark
Waiting, I must pray
A total eclipse of the sun

Druid Dreams

By Brian Jeffries, December 2004
Original “Dreams I’ll Never SeeEby the Allman Brothers)

Just one more lifetime, plastic world gives me the blues
Gonna pull myself together, put on my robe and runnin' shoes
Take the path up to the forest, my grove is there in front of me
Raise my arms in thanks once more, yeah - and huggin' my favorite tree
Chorus:
And this dream is the dream that I've gotta see
Goddess help me now, Druid dreams become reality

Just one more circle, council fire burnin' bright
Druids share with one another, as we vigil on through the night
And maybe do a chant or two, see what we can see
Or talkin' 'bout all the old times, and all about what's gonna be
Chorus:

Plant one more oak tree, care for it and let it grow
And if it's in a good place, pretty soon then you will know
It's a place for a gathering, of druid folk like you and me
And soon there'll be a forest, druid dreams will come to be
Chorus:

All By Myself

By anonymous from Colorado
November 2004, For the Public Domain
Original “All by MyselfEby numerous artists
With an oh-so spooky cheesy music video.
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://westwood.fortunecity.com/susileib/385/allbymyself.mid

When I was young
I rarely needed anyone
And Druid rites were just for fun
Those days are gone

Livin' alone
My heart seeks those fires and I can't rest
But when I walk to the deep forest
A lonely quest

All by myself
Don't wanna be, all by myself anymore
All by myself
Don't wanna live, all by myself anymore

Hard to be sure
Some days I feel so insecure
And Truth so distant and obscure
Remains my cure

INTERLUDE

All by myself
Don't wanna be, all by myself anymore
All by myself
Don't wanna live, all by myself anymore

INTERLUDE

Trees all around
Life teeming close under ground
And friends waiting to be found
Inside my town.

Not by myself
No longer be, all by myself anymore
Not by myself
No longer live, all by myself anymore

Not by myself
No longer be, all by myself anymore
Not by myself
No longer live, all by myself anymore

ETC

Bardic Salvo #3, December 3rd, 2004

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Sweet Grove Carleton College

Parody by Mike Scharding, DC Grove
October 2004, For the Public Domain
Original "Sweet Home Alabama" written by ALABAMA
(ed king - ronnie vanzant - gary rossington)
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://w3.uwyo.edu/~dwwilson/sweethom.mid

Year's wheels keep on turning
I can't wait to meet my kin
Singing songs about Awareness
I miss old Carleton once again
I'll be there I don't know when, yes

Well I heard the critics rant about her
Well, I heard preachers put her down
Well, I hope those folks will remember
A Reformed Druid don't need them around anyhow

Sweet Grove, Carleton College
Where the skies are so blue
Sweet Grove Carleton College
Lord, I love Dalon ap Landu

With their study load they keep real busy
And they all do what they can do
What might have been does not bother me
Does your lost chances bother you?
Tell the truth

Sweet Grove, Carleton College
Where the skies are so blue
Sweet Grove Carleton College
Lord, I love Dalon ap Landu
Here I come Carleton College

Now college kids have got their wise asses
And they've been known to do a prank or two
Lord they make me laugh so much
It picks me up when I'm feeling blue
Now how about you?

Sweet Grove, Carleton College
Where the skies are so blue
Sweet Grove Carleton College
Lord, I love Dalon ap Landu

Sweet Grove, Carleton College
Where the skies are so blue
Sweet Grove Carleton College
Lord, I love Dalon ap Landu
Sweet Grove, Carleton College
Lady
Lord, I'm coming home to you
Yea, yea old Northfield's got the answer

You Never Really Mind

By Eric Powers, October 2004/10/18
For the Public Domain
From Elvis Presly & Willie Nelson's "Always on My Mind"
See original lyrics http://www.links2love.com/love_lyrics_30.htm
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
Music at http://www.links2love.com/music/alwaysonmymind.mid
at http://www.sweetmemoriessite.com/OLM/Example/songs/alwaysonmymind.html

Maybe I didn't please you
Quite as good as I should have
Maybe I didn't praise you
Quite as often as I could have
Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time

You just never really mind
You just never really mind

Tell me, tell me that your soft winds may still blow
Give me, give me one more hint
That you are satisfied, satisfied

Maybe I didn't go out
All those cold and rainy days
But I truly never gave up
I will await your solstice rays
If times seem to go from bad to worse,
What can I do but pray?

You just never really mind
You just never really mind

Tell me, tell me that your soft winds will blow
Give me, give me one more hint
That you are satisfied, satisfied

Little things I should have said and done
I just never took the time... Yet...
You just never really mind
You just never really mind
You just never really mind

Dreamless

BY: Steven Emenhiser, age 16
OCT 2004, For the Public Domain

i am dreamless
i want nothing
take me away
before i hate everything
nothing i feel
is true and sweet
all is lost by this fact
all is feared by this lie
don't give in
you'll dream
again someday
i'm dreamless
i wish my life away
i'm thoughtless
i fight my pain away
i'm selfish
i push my way through this,
i am dreamless
nothing is what it seems
i see you now
and i see you clearly
when i'm awake
and when i'm dreary
see me now
for behold the truth
that i had once told
this nightmare that
takes my dreams away
i'm dreamless
i wish my life away
i'm thoughtless
i fight my pain away
i'm selfish
i push my way through this,

The Spirit That Moves

By Brian Jeffries, October 2004

Spirit of patterns as old as the sea
By wind and by wave they have brought her

Free flowing grace shows her pathways to me
And she moves on the face of the water

Waves quickly change but her call is the same
It beckons her sons and her daughters

Spirit that moves is the reason I came
As we dance on the face of the waters

GREEN REAPER

By Brian Jeffries, October 2004

Green reaper will stride across your lawn and mine
With the showers of summer it's a matter of time
With four cycle scythe he slashes green shoots
To all the same length like the hair of recruits
But down in the turfgrass unseen by most eyes
Are the old forests' children so reaper grow wise
Please sharpen your sight for the small seedling sprout
Change the path of your reaping and help the Earth out
May the trees which have been share the light once again

I'm A Reviver

By Mike, October 2004
For the Public Domain
Original was "I'm a Survivor" by Reba McEntire
This powerful song can be heard on the WB channel's Friday night show, "Reba" in the opening music.

I arrived 3 years too past prime
The Druids were on their last legs
But I must have heard my Saw no dead duck, just an egg.
I guess it'll keep on thrivin
's long as this search's worth striving
Cuz your future’s packed
And you’ve been starving
Your working it out and I'm not tryin
To change your mind
Cuz we were born to be

The silly fool without a hope
A victim of certain Pope
The one who oughta buckled down
But he's just too hard headed
A imple man
Who works odd jobs
Who loves his kin and never stops
With clumsy hands
And the lungs of a piper
I'm a reviver

I don't believe in self loathing
It only brings you down
May be the knave of silly clubs
But I make a smile from a frown
When the deck is stacked against me
I just play a different game
My roots are reaching in the past
And though my way is changing fast
Who I am is who I wanna be

The silly fool without a hope
A victim of certain Pope
The one who oughta buckled down
But he's just too hard headed
A imple man
Who works odd jobs
Who loves his kin and never stops
With clumsy hands
And the lungs of a piper
I'm a reviver

Bardic Salvo #2, November 16, 2004

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Vocation

Parody by Mike Scharding, DC Grove
Agust 2004, For the Public Domain
Original Song "Vacation", by the Go-Gos,
If link won't click please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
http://members.tripod.com/lisawebworld1/sounds/vacation.mid

Can't seem to get my mind off of you
All I can think of is Dalon ap Landu
I have found my way
I know how to pray
There can't be a day of mine that you won't be in

When you came to me I should've run
But I thought it was having fun
I changed what as wrong
And I'm now so strong
I should've known all along that time would tell

These years beside you
I cannot forget
Ten years beside you and I
Still haven't gotten over you yet

CHORUS
Vocation
All I ever wanted
Vocation
Hard to get away
Vocation
With you I'm not alone

These years beside you
I cannot forget
Ten years beside you and I
Still haven't gotten over you yet

CHORUS
Vocation
All I ever wanted
Vocation
Hard to get away
Vocation
With you I'm not alone

Vocation
All I ever wanted
Vocation
Hard to get away
Vocation
With you I'm not alone

Sweet Devotion

Parody by Pat Haneke, Akita Grove
April 2004, For the Public Domain
Original Song "Sweet Emotion" please plug address directly into a browser window for music:
http://www.fortunecity.com/silverstone/rambler/116/sweetem.mid

Sweet devotion
Sweet devotion

You talk about things that nobody cares
You're wearing that garb that nobody wears
You're calling out names to the Lord of the Deer
Let's praise their work through the year

Some holy rollin' preacher with a face like a prune
Said the devil'll get me for casting a rune
Well I got good news, he's a real good liar
'Cause there's not harm boogeying out by a fire

Sweet devotion
Sweet devotion

I pulled into town in a Geo car
Your old friends said I took rites just a little to far
They're telling you things but all of them lied
There's a few logs burnt but no animals have died
Yes that's right

You've studied long and first in your class
You'll vigil tonight and then drink from the chalice
Sharing legends, wisdom and lore
Serving friends & woods you adore

"I Feel the Wind..."

BY: Steven Emenhiser, age 16
OCT 2004, For the Public Domain

feel the wind graze opon my broken wounds
as the pointed star opon the stormy moons
the sound of the war, where a story of death is told
as her presence within those who fall begin to fold
but the silent voice in the background cannot be heard
no matter how loud she shouts her voice will only be heard
by those who can see, in the end is you or is it me
the blind are not ment to see her miracles
now sit and listen to all the facinatineg tales
she'll ride with you on the black stallion
search for the gods, she'll reveil them
beyond what we can understand sits the Otherworld
where the hearts of men are not easily "twirld"
but until that day, until we ask her to return
we'll be left for dead and ready to burn
i'm sorry, she's still protecting you though
worry not what other's are told
for it is you good judgment to honor her name
and when you consided "wicked" you're be the one not to blame
for all the gods be resting in your hands
on the dying earth mother's sacread lands
in the blink of an eye, her story is cut short
the world of men only respect her consort
may his and her breath beth not forgotton
and the freedom and peacefullness will flourish
may her breath never be in the night beckoning
for it is she that in the end we are nourished

All Who Wander are not Lost

BY: Anonymous
OCT 2004, For the Public Domain

Some are content to experiment on the farm's loam
But others must take up the hunt and from home will roam

You're now besieged with too many questions
So Boldly you foray forth from the old bastions

To ask them, you're certainly not the first
Without answers, you hopefully won’t be the last

Ever on, since time immemorial
Heroes have ranged in search of the mystical

Without some pain, little will be gained
But so many hurtful habits are still engrained.

You feel wracked like a cliched tortured artist
Angst driven, misunderstood, yes perhaps elitist.

Such a trip is oft Longley, the new is cast wide
From you inner critic companion you cannot hide.

GOODBYE

By Lydia Van de Grift, 2004
OCT 2004, For the Public Domain

That first Samhain, the grief was still too deep and raw.
I would not poke at gaping wounds, nor would I say farewell.
And that perhaps was a mistake, I cannot say.
Newly wed, the next. And grief was locked behind a joyous prison.
I thanked my ancestors for my love, no thought to farewells.
And was that a mistake? I will not think so.
And still the next. When all thoughts of you were tinged with fury.
How dared you? And would not forgive, nor say farewell.
And it was a mistake. And I am sorry.
Yet another Samhain. Did you not sail years before?
I thought it was too late to say farewell, and felt regret.
Mistaken in a way, you were gone and yet...

Ritual done, my friends have gone home,
Rain done, my husband's ritual starts outside
Where all is still, and the mists are rising.
Within, my daughter sleeps, our pets sleep.
I will divine no more tonight,
For these possibilities bring unease.
So I prepare for sleep, contented dog chin on my knee.

I felt a presence, and my dog looked up,
Wuffing lightly, wagging slightly,
Gazing at our unseen visitor.
I tucked back thoughts of sleep to
Bid polite greeting. What ancestor
Honors me with their wisdom
So late this Samhain, I thought?
The sensation of a chuckle,
Of a brush of hand 'cross shoulder.
Half-forgotten scent washed over me.
Not ancestor but friend.

In one great burst comes forth
Grief, fury, apology, and regret
As though an ill-healed spot were lanced.
Ah, old friend, old friend.
I will not beg you stay-it would be wrong.
Too many legends of the disaster that may bring,
Such unpleasantness should not mar this occasion.
I will not ask you why-it is as they say
"A question not tending to further enlightenment."
Your reasons were your own, and if I
Understood them, mayhap I would choose the same.
There sits a path clearly marked 'no entry'.
I will hand you, though, a small bundle
Marked 'regrets and apologies'.
So. You will shake out this bundle, then,
Transforming it to floating sparkles with a laugh?
Well, I gave them to you, and they do look much nicer.
A rising, salt-hint breeze swirls sparkles away.
My hair is stirred by it, my dog shivers at it,
Tucking in tail, hunkering down.
That surf sound, almost heard, or
Sensed, imagined?
This tide turns with this night's end, it seems.
I love you. I'll miss you. Farewell.

My dog went back to sleep.
I lay down and drifted off,
Thinking on what had passed.
I woke to a cold form next to me,
Long, coarse curly hair across my arm.
No hesitation marred pulling my
Night-chilled husband close
I knew who I held.
For I had said goodbye.

GREEN REAPER

By Brian Jeffries, 2004
OCT 2004,

Green reaper will stride across your lawn and mine
With the showers of summer it's a matter of time
With four cycle scythe he slashes green shoots
To all the same length like the hair of recruits
But down in the turfgrass unseen by most eyes
Are the old forests' children so reaper grow wise
Please sharpen your sight for the small seedling sprout
Change the path of your reaping and help the Earth out
May the trees which have been share the light once again

Bardic Salvo #1, November 1, 2004

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"EIGHT CRAZY NIGHT'S"

BY: Steven Emenhiser, age 16
OCT 2004, For the Public Domain
It's actually 8 poems but to me it's eight crazy nights.

SAMHAIN/holloween
************
may the end come, where one must leave
a passage way, to the otherworld we be
the last harvest, the last season
our ancestors return, we'll never leave them

YULE/winter sol.
******
darkness is leaving may the sun soon shine
may the great mother's blessings be mine
now is time for our great sun's return
so all the children in the village can learn
about the great earth mother,
and the sun our mighty father

IMBOLC/oimelc
**********
light the candle, we all wish for light
may the winter end and become bright
spring is to come, flowers in our sight
where blessing over crimes, and days over nights

OSTARA/spring equ
**********
as the flowers bloom, in our sight
under her full moon, ohh so bright
father and mother waching us above
finding strength to go on with their love

BELTANE/ may day
************
the beltane fires ablaze
as the celtic peoples gaze
watching the great marrige
then riding off in a carrige

LITHA/ summer sol.
*******
her warmth her songs heard in the winds
through the sun's reign our crops send
longest day and shortest night
the sun rules ohh so light and bright

LUGH/lammas
*******
our long awaited father
who cares for our mother
we celebrate once again
may the long awaited lugh begin
the first harvest of fruits grain and bread
sacrifice of lugh is done, his words have been said

MABON/fall equ.
*********
ohh autumn leaves fall unto the earth
we harvest grain and never thirst
be blessed and leave thy mark
for our time has come to dark

Inside

By Steven Emeinhiser of Texas
October 2003, For the Public Domain

Inside
i feel left out
and can't be found
all inside
i feel this hate
and don't know why
inside i feel
i never care
if i live or die
inside i hope you
plaease hear me
cause i'm speaking now
inside i need you to
listen up, listen well
this is when i fell
somewhere inside i'm
lost within nowhere
where i don't belong
inside i'm
continuosly abandoned
inside
i want to know
what my purpose is
inside i see
if it'll be okay
will i stand again\
bottle up inside
i want to know
if someone's out there
inside i wonder
if everyone is
ot there waiting on me
inside i know
if anyone is
out there thinking of me
inside i'll know
i'll get through this
even when i don't see how
inside you'll get what you deserve\
inside is what really matters
inside the heart there's the truth
inside, you'll be free
inside, you'll be with me
inside, you'll run away with me

The Song of the Reformed Druid

(Version 1.0) by Geo TwoCrowsChatting (George L. Verge)
October 2004, For the Public Domain
Snow Maple Grove

There is a song that does ring true
This song is shared by me and you

It changes rhythm throughout the year
It's melody is heard far and near

It does true by head, heart and hand
It is found in sky, sea and land

It shines true by the Sun so bright
It glows true by the Moonlit night

It is neither new and neither old
It can't be bought and it can't be sold

It can be found in wood dark and deep
It can be found in lake still and steep

It goes to and fro on whispered breeze
It cannot be burned and does not freeze

It rings through both the Beast and Man
Its rhythm ties them to the land

It is most solid as well as fluid
It is the song of the Reformed Druid

We are the Druids

Parody by Pat Haneke, Akita Grove
March 2004, For the Public Domain
Original Song "We are the Champions" by Queen
Plug this address directly into a browser window for music:
http://headeye.com/music/midi/QUEEN__We_are_the_Champions.mid

I've found the clues -
Time after time -
I've wrote my ballads -
And cast my rhymes
And bad mistakes
I've made a few
I've had my share of sand kicked in my face -
But I've come through

We are the Druids - my friends
And we'll keep on pondering - without end -
We are the Druids -
We are the Druids
No time for loose thoughts
'cause we art the Druids - of these woods -

I've taken my vows
And went where Nature called
It brought me truth and wisdom and all those debts that goes with it
I thank you all -

But it's been no easy harvest
Nothing else I'd choose
I consider it a challenge to figure out what's best -
Much gained, little to lose -

We are the Druid - my friends
And we'll keep on pondering - without end -
We are the Druids -
We are the Druids
No time for loose thoughts
'cause we art the Druids - of these woods -

We Move Big Rocks

By Mike, Digitalis Grove
August 2004, For the Public Domain
Original, "We will rock you" by Queen
Plug this address directly into a browser window for music
http://www.oocities.org/MotorCity/Track/2465/wewillrockyou.mid

Laddy you're a boy have a big dream
Playin' in the woods gonna build a big henge some day
You got mud on yo' face
Pick up the pace
Pushin' your rocks all over the place

We move we move big rocks
(sound effects: stomp stomp clap clap...)
We move we move big rocks
(sound effects: stomp stomp clap clap...)

Laddy you're a young man strong man
Shoutin' at the line gonna raise the top stone this day
You got sweat on yo' robe
Steady the rope
Spreadin' your circles all over the globe

We move we move big rocks
(sound effects: stomp stomp clap clap...)
We move we move big rocks
(sound effects: stomp stomp clap clap...)

Laddy you're an old man wise man
Sightin' with your stones gonna chart all the stars some day
You got salt in your beard
The clouds have cleared
It all makes sense what once was weird.

We move we move big rocks
(sound effects: stomp stomp clap clap...)
We move we move big rocks
(sound effects: stomp stomp clap clap...)

Bardic Salvo #2, November 14th, 2004

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Rules of the Contest

Just because the Time of Sleep is approaching after Halloween, means that your creative urges have to go dormant! Last year's 3rd Annual contest fizzled out, but we're ready to try yet again.

The RDNA will have our 4th Annual Wintry Bardic Contest from Nov 1st to May 1st, on this conference. Anytime during that period, submit to me your poems, songs, SHORT epic sagas, free-verse, or SHORT stories to me at mikerdna@hotmail.com I will host them this year as the judge [That way, I'll have a better chance of winning, no?]

Rules:
0. Anyone can play and enter, even your friends.
1. You can spoof an existing song/poem or be an entirely original creation, but the words have to be your own or a collaboration. If spoofing, please list the source of the music or original lyrics.
2. Subject may be anything vaguely "Druidic," what ever that means. Quality is not a big concern for me either. Have fun. Maximum of 20 entries per person, meaning you Pat.
3. Humor, anger, vexing, angst-drawn, serious, thoughtful, weird, drama-queenish is all perfectly acceptable; but naughty words may be tsk-tsk'ed and finger-waggled.
4. Poetry will be collected throughout the winter. Spurts of poetry will be issued forth regularly every two weeks between November 1st and May 1st (about 13 mailings).
5. Bribes must be at least $500, to be acknowledged.
6. Winner will be announced May 1st, 2005 and will bear the honor of "Bard of the Reform" from May 2005 to May 2006.
7. Entries will be posted on RDNAtalk and at http://www.oocities.org/mikerdna/bard4.html and sent by e-mail.
8. Submission of an entry is considered to be accepting their reprint in the Green Books of ARDA 3 in 2013. Unless you tell me that they are copyrighted, I will assume they are for the public domain. I will label them either way according to your choice.

To see previous bardic contest entries go to:

http://www.oocities.org/mikerdna/bard.html 2001-2002 Winter
http://www.oocities.org/mikerdna/bard2.html 2002-2003 Winter