A Song Tag

I took this tag from Mikayla’s archives because it was way too fun to pass over! All these songs are from my Scottish folk song playlist. 

Favourite song: 
That is SOOOO hard to pick. But I definitely very much love Skye Boat Song, sung by Nicky Spence. It’s soooo gorgeous. I love singing it and I love listening to it even more. 

Speed, bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,
Onward! the sailors cry;
Carry the lad that's born to be King
Over the sea to Skye.

Least favourite song: 
I took out the songs I didn’t like from the playlist, so I’ll go with another song I heard once and that I hate. The Lord of the Dance. Ugh. 

A song that makes you happy: 
The Uist Tramping Song (sung by Gregory Moore). It’s so happy :) Always makes me smile so wide! 

Come along, come along! Let us foot it out together, 
Come along, come along, be it fair or stormy weather, 
With the hills of home before us and the purple of the heather, 
Let us sing in happy chorus: come along, come along.

A song that makes you sad: 
O Waly, Waly (sung by Samuel Dundas & Suzanne Kompass). That particular line... 

O, love is handsome and love is fine,

And love's a jewel while it is new,

But when it’s old, it groweth cold,

And fades away, like morning dew.

So sad. 🙁 I like that song because it’s so dramatic and sad. 😝

A song that makes you think of someone: 
I know she’s dead, but The Isle of Mull (sung by Gregory Moore & the Pymble Ladies' College) kind of makes me think of Flora McDonald somehow... 

And I can't find the lyrics anywhere!

A song that makes you think of somewhere: 
MacGregor’s Gathering (sung by Samuel Dundas & the Queensland Choir) makes me think of the Highlands because it reminds me so much of Rob Roy (Sir Walter Scott).

If they rob us of name, and pursue us with beagles, 

Give their roofs to the flame, and their flesh to the eagles! 

While there's leaves in the forest, and foam on the river, 

MacGregor despite them shall flourish for ever! 

A song that reminds you of an event: 
Again, it’s history, but The Long Ships (sung by Thomas Keenan & the Pymble Ladies' College), makes me think of the Vikings disembarking in England. 

Couldn't find the lyrics for this one either...

A song you know all the words to: 
Scots Wha Hae (sung by Gregory Moore, Thomas Keenan, & the Pymble Ladies' College). 😍 Such a lovely poem and such lovely music!!! 

Wha will be a traitor knave? 

Wha can fill a coward's grave! 

Wha sae base as be a slave? 

         Let him turn and flee! 

Wha for Scotland's king and law 

Freedom's sword will strongly draw, 

Freeman stand, or freeman fa', 

         Let him follow me! 

A song you can dance to: 
I don’t dance to songs but I do tap my feet to music and one that’s definitely a foot-taper is The March of the Cameron Men (sung by Samuel Dundas & the Queensland Choir). I love the lyrics too! 

There's many a man of the Cameron clan 
That has followed his chief to the field.
He has sworn to support him or die by his side,
For a Cameron never can yield.

A song that helps you fall asleep: 

Hmmm... I don’t listen to music to fall asleep. So I don’t know. Once, though, when I was sick, I listened to my hymns playlist while lying in bed one night, and I remember that Dear Lord & Father of Mankind really relaxed me. 

Drop thy still dews of quietness,
till all our strivings cease;
take from our souls the strain and stress,
and let our ordered lives confess
the beauty of thy peace.

A song by your favourite band: 

I haven’t got a favourite band so I’ll pick a favourite artist. I love Nicky Spence’s voice and my favourite of his Scottish songs is Auld Lang Syne. SO gorgeous!!! 

We twa hae paidl'd in the burn 

Frae morning sun til dine, 

But seas between us braid hae roar'd 

Sin' auld lang syne.

A song from a band you hate: 

Again, going for an artist. I dislike Moira Anderson’s voice... but I like her song so I tolerate her lol. The song’s Robin Adair. 😉

What made th' assembly shine?

Robin Adair.

What made the ball sae fine?

Robin was there

What when the play was o'er,
What made my heart so sore?

Oh, it was parting with

Robin Adair.

A song that is a guilty pleasure: 

The Loch Lomond arrangement by Deirdre Foyster (sung by Lisa Lockland-Bell, Gregory Moore, Thomas Keenan, the Imogen Men's Chorus, & the Pymble Ladies' College). I have to skip two songs in the medley. But I love the rest of it. 

A Gordon for me, a Gordon for me!
If ye're no a Gordon ye're no use to me. 
The Black Watch are braw, the Seaforths and a,' 
But the cocky wee Gordon's the pride o' them a'.

A song no one expects you like:
 Probably Ye Banks & Braes o’ Bonnie Doon sung by Suellen Cusak. I don’t like listening to sopranos generally, but she sings so well and I love her rendition of it, even if she doesn’t sing the Scottish pronunciation. 😉

Aft hae I rov'd by bonnie Doon

To see the rose and woodbine twine;

And ilka bird sang o' its luve,

And fondly sae did I o' mine;

Wi' lightsome heart I pu'd a rose,

Fu' sweet upon its thorny tree!

And my fause luver stole my rose -

But, ah! he left the thorn wi' me.

A song that describes you: 
Hail, Caledonia! (sung/arranged/recorded by Kenneth McKellar & Bob Sharples). 😉 I love the lyrics and they quite apply to me. 😜

Hail Caledonia! land of my childhood, 
Home of my birth, so radiant and fair. 
Though I have roam'd through the world and its beauties, 
Nowhere on earth with thee can compare. 
Thou art majestic and regal in splendour, 
Thou art the land of the gallant and free, 
Lassies with hearts aye so true and so tender. 
Hail Caledonia! how I love thee!

A song you used to love but now hate: 
Comin’ Through the Rye. I like most of the song but... don’t agree with the sentiment. 😏

A song you hear often on the radio: 
Don’t listen to the radio really, so. 🤷🏻‍♀️ And I don't want to hear the songs on the radio, so. 

A song you wish you heard on the radio: 
Any of them! We’ll pick The Road to the Isles (sung by Gregory Moore, Samuel Dundas, & the Queensland Choir) because I really really love that one and I haven’t mentioned it yet. 

So I go on my journey, through the bonny heather, 

Never tiring, though I walked a hundred miles!

There's a song in my heart, be it black or bright the weather, 

For so much am I nearer to the Isles!

A song from your favorite album: 
My favourite songs are in two albums called practically the same thing & which are by the same people, sooo... I’m just gonna pick one song I love. Wi’ a Hundred Pipers & a’ & a’ (sung by Thomas Keenan & the Imogen Men's Chorus). This one is so Scottish and so marital!!

The Esk was swollen sae red an' sae deep, 
But shouther to shouther the brave lads keep; 
Twa thousand swam owre to fell English ground 
An' danced themselves dry to the pibroch's sound. 
Dumfoun'er'd the English saw, they saw, 
Dumfoun'er'd they heard the blaw, the blaw, 
Dumfoun'er'd they a' ran awa', awa', 
Frae the hundred pipers an' a', an' a'.

A song you listen to when you’re angry: 
None in particular... I tend to turn on the playlist and shuffle it. 

A song you listen to when you’re happy: 
Ditto... 

A song you listen to when you’re sad: 
Ditto again... I just don’t pick songs on purpose. 🤷🏻‍♀️

A song you want to play at your wedding: 
My Luve is Like a Red, Red Rose (sung by Nicky Spence)... minus the last two verses because hopefully he won’t be leaving me! XD 

As fair art thou, my bonnie lass, 
So deep in luve am I.
And I will luve thee still, my dear, 
Till a' the seas gang dry.

A song you want played at your funeral: 
Amazing Grace (played by the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards & the Czech Film Orchestra) would be the only one eligible for this, and it would be very nice, so. I really love their arrangement of it. 

The Lord hath promised good to me,
  His word my hope secures;
He will my shield and portion be
  As long as life endures.

A song that makes you laugh:
I don’t laugh, but this one makes me smile—O Sing to Me the Auld Scotch Sangs sung by Gregory Moore & Suellen Cusack. For inside reasons. ;) I really love their voices and they sing so nicely together! And I love the lyrics. 

O sing to me the auld Scotch sangs 
I' the braid Scottish tongue. 
The sangs my father loved to hear, 
The sangs my mither sung, 
When she sat beside my cradle, 
Or croon'd me on her knee. 
And I wadna sleep, she sang sae sweet, 
The auld Scotch sangs to me. 
And I wadna sleep, she sang sae sweet 
The auld Scotch sangs to me.

A song you can play on an instrument: 
None of these, lol! 

A song you wish you could play: 
Umm... they’d all be cool to be able to play, but I don’t particularly hanker to play any of them. 

A song that makes you feel guilty: 
None on this playlist! 😉

A song from your childhood: 
Leaving this playlist... The theme song for “Country Mouse & City Mouse.” I can still sing the whole thing. :D 

Your favourite song at this time last year:
I have no idea. XD 

I don't tag anyone, but if you want to do it, go ahead! 

Reader Problems Book Tag (+ Winter Reading Challenge)

Hey, friends! Today we have a fun little impromptu post. These problems are 100% real bookish problems. It's not even funny. 

I stole this tag from Kate. xD

1. You have 20,000 books in your TBR, how in the world do you decide what to read next?
Start at A and work my way through alphabetically. (Also that sounds exactly like my TBR will be when I'm 73). 

2. You’re halfway through a book and you’re just not loving it. Do you put it down or are you committed?
If I'm just bored, I'll power through. If it’s downright bad, I'll DNF it.

3. The end of the year is coming and you’re behind on your reading challenge--do you try to catch up? And if so, how?
Absolutely!! With a readathon (alone or with friends). I've done it before. xD

4. The covers of a series you love do not match. How do you cope?
Complain about it to "all and sundry, near and far--my family in particular." ;P

5. Everyone and their mother loves a book that you do not. Who do you bond with over your shared feelings?
Well, it looks like everybody loves it, so I'm 100% alone... which is rather unbelievable. I'll probably just repeat my opinion on it and if you don't care, I'll just be quiet. ;)

6. You’re reading a book in public and you’re about to start crying. How do you deal?
By grabbing a Kleenex and getting ready to cry. xD I loooove to cry over a book. Movies, now, I pride myself on being stoic. 

7. The sequel to a book you loved just came out but you’ve forgotten a lot of what happens. Are you going to reread it?
Yes! Even if it's a whole series. 

8. You do not want anyone to borrow your books. How do you politely say no when someone asks?
"Sorry, I can't." xD 

9. You have picked up and put down 5 books in the last month. How do you get over this reading slump?
Power through one, and then the other, and then the other... I've discovered that if I make myself read I end up getting over the slump. 

10. There are so many books coming out that you are dying to read. How many do you end up buying?
Probably none. I have a teeny tiny budget. xP I wait until there's a sale or a special occasion. 

11. After you purchase all of these books that you’re dying to read how long do they sit on your shelves before you get to them?
I'll hoard them for ages until I decide to finally buckle down and read them. ;)

And I tag... whoever wants to do it. :)

~ / / ~

While we're talking books... here's the winter reading challenge! And we have a new name. Thank you to Ryana Lynn for thinking it up!

This will probably be blurry, but if you click on the image it'll take you to a new page & the copy of the image there should be good. If it's still blurry, contact me through the contact form on the side & I'll send you a good copy.

Soooo... enjoy, let me know if you join in (and when you finish!)... and read! 

The Intimidating TBR Tag

I stole this tag from Victoria's old blog Victoria's Book Nook. 

ABOUT MY TBR

Amount: 557 books. 😅  

Mostly: Historical Fiction & Nonfiction.

Since: 2016. 🙊

Will Finish By: 2020??? I don't know... probably not... those things last you all your life. But I do hope to read some books that have been on there for 3 years!! 😅

1 // A book on your TBR pile that you haven't finished.

Like, all of them? If you mean one I started & never finished... A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I loved it, I just... we were reading it for school, and when we stopped, we weren’t done it... and I had forgotten the beginning over the summer so I have to reread the whole beginning and I just haven’t gotten back to it. 

2 // A book you just haven't had the time to read for.

Basically all of them... We’ll go with A Question of Loyalty by Jesseca Wheaton. I want to reread books 1 & 2 before I read book 3, and I haven’t had time yet. 

3 // A book you haven't read because it's a sequel.

Escape & Endurance by Sarah Holman. I haven't read Dreams & Devotion yet, and I want to read Elapse first, but I haven't gotten it yet. 

4 // A book you haven't read because it's brand new.

So I don't actually have any brand-new books. But... I downloaded this book just the other day... Storm Warriors; or, Life-Boat Work on the Goodwin Sands by John Gilmore. It sounds interesting! I love books about the sea & I just recently discovered books about the lifeboats of England in the 1800s and it’s very interesting. 

5 // A book by and author you read previously but didn't really like.

I don’t happen to have any books that I’m hesitant to try for that reason. But I’m putting off The Earth & Sky by Edward S. Holden because it sounds like his astronomy book which is somewhat boring.

6 // A book on your TBR pile that you’re just not in the mood to read.

5 Secrets of Story Structure by K.M. Weiland. I just don’t feel like studying right now. 😉

(But I've heard it's super good, and it's currently still free, so maybe go check it out?) 

7 // A book on your TBR pile that you haven't read because it's enormous.

*coughs* All of Sir Winston Churchill’s books. I have books 1-3 of his Second World War series and book 2 of his History of the English-Speaking Peoples and... it takes a lot of determination to sit down and read Churchill. I love his writing, but it is long. 

        

8 // A book on your TBR you bought because of the cover.

*hides* So I used to be innocent of this but now I have fallen into it. The Princess Spy by Melanie Dickerson. I have three of her books now and I look forwards to reading them. 

9 // The book on your TBR you find the most intimidating.

Oooo... uh... most intimidating?? The Complete Harvard Classics. That thing is S O  B I G. 😰

My 5 Favourite Bookish Twists || Clichés & Twists 02

Today is part two of my clichés & twists series. Be sure to read part one if you haven't yet. As I stated last week, I like the "perfect" things. Beautiful heroine, handsome hero, predictable romance, happy-ever-after, villain-is-caught type of books. And yet... I also love the not-what-I-expected, bittersweet, realistic, unusual type of books too. There's a place for both. I firmly believe we need books that show different point-of-views--the unheard, unthought-of, forgotten POVs. Books that show life as it is, but reminds you that whatever happens, God is there and He reigns. Books that challenge your opinions and prejudices. Books that show you things you didn't think about. And books that are just frankly exciting and unusual. Today, I'll be listing my five favourite book twists--things that make a book stand out or hit hard. 

1. Blemished hero.

Henty's heroes are almost always handsome, strong, brave, and skilled. And yet one of my favourite of his heroes is the only flawed one--Ralph Bathurst. Bathurst is clever, handsome, and strong; but he has an innate and helpless horror of noise. Yells, gunshots, roars. drumbeats--loud noises he cannot stand. Talk about a serious defect during the Indian Mutiny! Bathurst's struggles to overcome his flaw are excellent. Heroes who struggle, in any way, are very relatable.

2.  Flawed heroine.  
This, again, ties in with number one. The Little Women from the classic are all flawed--pride, temper,  shyness. And yet, don't we all relate to them and love them? Anne Shirley is beautiful, but she struggles against her "romanticness" and her pride. A flawed heroine, whether in her face or her character, is much more "living" than a perfect one. The "perfect" characters often tend to be boring, if not irritating. 

3. Different POV.

There are some topics that we are used to seeing through the eyes of the same type of person. A WWII book is generally through the eyes of an Ally. An American Revolution book tends to be (on the American side at least) to be from an American's POV. The French-Indian wars in the 1600s are typically written from the French standpoint. But a book that shows WWII through the eyes of an German. Or the American Revolution from the POV of an Englishman or a Canadian. Or the French-Indian wars from the standpoint of an Iroquois. Now that is new and fascinating--and, if well done, though-provoking--even to the author himself, perhaps. 

4. Unexpected twist.

Rather a vague title, but let me explain. By this I mean when you, the reader, is expecting something to happen and the book takes a strong turn to the left or right of that and you are left gaping in astonishment. Unless it has nothing whatsoever to do with the story, that is a fascinating place. 

5. Bittersweet ending. 
Your "ship" didn't happen. The MC's best friend died. They didn't strike gold. The homestead was filed by someone else. Loss. Loss in any way. Bittersweet endings can be so well done. In real life, things don't turn out the way we want. In books, the same can happen--and remind us that there is still hope and beauty. 

So let the villain get away. Make your Nazi captain nice instead of devilish. Marry your main character to someone else than her childhood friend or her dashing rescuer. Give you hero a fatal character defect. Make them unusual and real. 

~ / / ~

What are your thoughts on this series? Have you any favourite twists?

Vulnerable & Real

I spilled this out tonight after realizing this with many tears. It’s messy and raw and real. I’m sharing it because I want to be real and a help to someone. I hope some girl can see through this that she isn’t alone, that someone else has struggled as she has/is, and that she too can find healing, peace, and victory in Christ. I want to share my journey through this sea called life and share what I have learned to make things easier for someone. 

As a character I have about three good virtues. It’s easy for me to love people, and hard for me to dislike them. I feel sorry for them easily, and I try to find mitigations or excuses for them a lot. I can be very dedicated and perfectionist.

For the rest, I’m a mess. 

I am always afraid of doing something wrong. I’m afraid to make a mistake. To do something stupid. To cause an accident. To do something wrong. I’m always, always afraid. I worry that I said something stupid, or that I looked like an attention hog, or that I sound too French or too English, or that I did something against etiquette or custom. I’m afraid that I broke the law or will do use something wrong. I’m afraid all the time. 

And because I am not perfect, I have a very low self-esteem. I’m proud, very proud, but because I don’t measure up to my standards that hurts my pride. I’m not witty. I can’t draw. I’m not good at making quick decisions (because I’m afraid of making a bad decision). I can’t play an instrument. I can’t talk French or English perfectly. I don’t read as fast as my sister does. I can’t braid my hair. I’m not pretty. I’m overweight. I’m awkward. I’m clumsy. I’m shy. I’m slow at catching concepts. I’m very naïve. I’m impatient. I’m lazy. I’m very easily discouraged. I’m fearful. I’m not very spiritual at all. All those flaws overwhelm me and to me, I am valueless because I can’t do anything important. To me, I’m a failure. 

And I spend my life in a constant cycle of fear and discouragement. Oh, in between I’m happy. I am easily made happy and I get very happy very quickly. But even in my happy moments, those things stand out.

But now I am looking again. Rethinking my life. Am I a failure? Didn’t God make me the way I was, naïve, clumsy, absent-minded, forgetful, awkward, slow, short, big-boned? And didn’t I make bad choices and end up overweight and scarred by acne and with ugly fingernails? Don’t I have to fight against my laziness and discouragement and pride? 

The answer is YES. 

Yes. I will embrace the body and character God gave me. He didn’t make me witty. He didn’t make me with black hair and a long nose and long hands and small bones and a long frame. He didn’t make me quick at understanding simple everyday things. He made me as I am for a reason. I am not valueless because I am short, or slow, or naïve, or awkward, or absent-minded. He made me that way because He can use me this way if I let Him. And the rest? I can change it. I can change my body weight. I can stop picking at my pimples and biting my nails and having bad manners. I can fight against my laziness and pride and discouragement. 

In His strength. 

I do not need to live in fear. If I genuinely let the Spirit control me,

I won’t say have to worry about hurting or offending people, because I’ll be telling the truth with love. I don’t need to worry about making mistakes, because Christian life is all about grace. I will mess up. I will come short. And I have to. Because when I fail, that’s when I need Jesus’ strength to go on. It’s not my strength that can do this. I cannot love a perfect life on my own. I cannot do this in my own strength. 

My problem is I am focusing on myself. I set myself a standard and did not reach it. And the goal was me. I wanted to be pretty and talented because I wanted people to notice and think well of me. Not of my God. Of me. I want to be strong and perfect in myself. I did not want to accept that I was not perfect and not strong and I needed God’s strength. My image of perfectionism and beauty was wrong. 

I need to realign my goals and priorities. My goal needs to be to be like Christ. To have Jesus shining through me. The outside and the defects don’t matter when Christ is in your heart, because the inside becomes beautiful and it shows through. I need to surrender myself and my pride and let Christ have His way in me. I need to admit that I cannot be perfect on my own, in anything, but through Christ who strengtheneth me, I can have the victory over my struggles and be perfect in Him.