At last, a break in the weather. 10 days of gales, fierce before that, more grim stuff to come. But a lovely calm, cold morning and consequently a peaceful dog who just wants to sniff along the Urafirth beach.
I call them Loki’s Candles, one of the traditional Shetland names, but they’re also known as Goonieman’s candles, Willie Gunn’s candles, or Willie Laus. Our pal the wonderfully talented Helen Robertson
https://www.helenrobertson.com/collections/lokis-collection
makes beautiful jewellery modelled on them. They’re pieces of birch bark, washed across the Atlantic from Canada, and make very good firefighters, though somehow burning them feels like sacrilege.
And I don’t have to, as I have obtained a lot of scrap wood, some of it from the conversion work currently underway at our former Church of Scotland. One of the dozens of historic Kirks sold off by the religious apparatchiks at 121 George Street, it will be comfortable holiday accommodation in due course.
And fair enough. We after all live in an even more historic former Church of Scotland manse, much older than the Kirk that was built so the minister could breakfast with one eye on early-arriving elders.
So now I’m burning the Kirk. The chainsawed pews, broken pitch pine beams, the lumps of stained panelling all go to heat the former home of its minister.
Out on the beach, there’s loads of firewood washed up by the gales. I don’t need it, though. Loki must be laughing.
It will be really nice
As a holiday rental
The house built for God
Converted with care
Insulated and heated
I’m not sentimental
It always was freezing
Breaths clouding in prayer
And numb fingers flicking
The hymnary pages
Pitch pine skelfing our arses
Unforgiving and cold
Now as work progresses
They are building in stages
A warm, cheerful home
With a soul that’s been sold
Scrap wood from the builder
Has just been delivered
Here; to the Old Manse
Another piece of God’s work
Now I’m chopping and sawing
To stave off the shivers
To keep myself warm
I’ll be burning the kirk
Leave a comment