Crann na beatha Stories and Poetry

Cead FáilteWelcome back to another episode of Crann na beatha Short Stories and PoetryI am Terrance Ó Domhnaill, your village scéalaí, returning again this week with more stories and poems from authors around the world.This week, I have three stories and two poems.My first story is part 1 of a Bulgarian tale about a young girl and dragons. I will read part 2 next week. My second story is a take from old Scottish Gael stories about Brownies. Then the third is from Africa. A story about a parrot and his love. The poems I picked out are about war and death and a dark poem about Autumn from a Substack writer.So gather round once more and let me read to you under the shade of the crann na beatha, the tree of life.The days grow shorter as the harvest season comes to another year end. The days grow cooler now as we head into Autumn. For some, this brings on the changing fall colors of the trees and setting the heat for the cooler nights ahead. When I lived way up north, I would already be burning wood to warm the house up at night by this time of year.I am traveling a bit more now and trying to keep up with my work week, so to speak. I keep telling myself that I am supposed to be retired. My plan after the turn of the new year is to spend less time with podcasting and more time with traveling and writing.I will still put forth this podcast/audiobook every week to promote the writers I find as they can surely use the exposure.I have stopped considering my own fortunes as it has become obvious after this summer that my little blog articles and newsletters will only reach a handful of people around the world. I am now content with that. Which is why I am slowing down a bit.I am not a professional blog writer and I don’t have the time to write something at least once a day like so many others. If I want to say something that is on my mind at the time, I will post something. Otherwise, I am moving on to other things like marketing my current book, writing other books, and traveling more during the spring and fall.There would be a lot of people who would miss this half hour story time as well so I at least need to continue that for as long as I can. This podcast is broadcast all over the world using my podcast platform at rss.com and the amount of listeners outside of these platforms are pretty substantial.If you have ever listened to the show, you would know that I introduce every story and poem with the name of the piece, the author and the publication, if known, at the start of each reading. This is how all of the writers I select to read get world-wide attention.That is all I have to say today. I will return again next week with more stories for everyone. I have three stories set to go for next week. Part 2 of Dragon’s Wings, another chapter of the space opera I have been reading by a Substack writer and another science fiction story by another Substack writer.Here are the links to this weeks selections:Dragon’s Wings — Part 1Unbearable fearsMariana BusarovaBrownies and CreamWhen a minor annoyance takes a surprising turn to something more, folklore and a mother’s worry work to even the scoreArpad NagyWhat did the Parrot’s Lover do to help It?Ignatious C AI, Whom Time Abandoned~ it’s all too familiar, you see ~Farida HaqueGo raibh maith agat. Thank you for your timeAs I say good bye this week, I wish to leave you with this Irish blessing as you go about your day. “May the warm winds of summer still warm you a bit, and the cold rain stay off your shoulders as you prepare for Samhain.” Go sit you by the warmth of the fire to rid you of the chill and listen to the my stories as the days grow shorter. Slán go fóill — goodbye for now.T. Ó Domhnaill — Gaelic SeanchaiThanks for reading Crann na beatha-The Tree of Life! This post is public so feel free to share it.Crann na beatha-The Tree of Life is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit todomhnaill.substack.com/subscribe