Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Melrose Abbey and the Scottish Borders #Scotland #History #OurAuthorGang


Melrose Abbey
(St Mary's Abbey, Melrose)
by Mary Anne Yarde


I have a bucket list of historical buildings that I want to visit ~ No jumping out of aeroplanes for me ~ I would much rather explore the remains of ancient castles, battlefields, and abbeys. At the very top of my list was Melrose Abbey in Scotland.



Why Melrose Abbey? To be fair, I have no idea. I do have a bit of a thing for ruined Abbeys, always have. Maybe, in this case, it has something to do with Robert the Bruce ~ his heart is buried at Melrose. Or perhaps, it is because when asked to name an Abbey in Scotland, Melrose is the first one I think of. Whatever the reason, it was on my must see list.

We spent two nights in the Scottish Borders and boy did we pack a lot in. But I was determined that one of those days was going to be reserved for Melrose.

We woke up bright and early on the day we had planned to visit Melrose. The weather was fine, a little bit on the chilly side, but at least it wasn’t raining. We packed the kids in the car, put Melrose in the Sat-Nav and off we went. But the thing is with Scotland, you can't drive 100m up the road without a sign pointing to yet another historical site, and I am afraid, we did get rather distracted. But it was so worth it for views such as this...





Our first stop of the day turned out to be an unplanned visit to Hermitage Castle. Hermitage Castle has a rather sinister feel to it ~ it certainly has a rather gruesome history...there was that whole witchcraft incident in the 14th Century, which saw the Lord of Hermitage, William De Soulis, boiled in lead by the locals ( or so the legend goes).


  Hermitage Castle
(Photo courtesy of Wikipedia ~ My photos were a little blurry!)

Once we had explored Hermitage Castle we were back on the road heading for Melrose ~ but then we saw a sign to Jedburgh Abbey ~ so of course, we had to visit that as well.


 Jedburgh Abbey

And then while we were there we visited Mary Queen of Scots House ~ it would have been rude not to. When I say Mary’s House, it wasn’t actually hers. She just so happened to visit a sick friend there once.

So much for taking the day to explore Melrose!

We finally arrived in Melrose in the middle of the afternoon. Melrose is a small town but the amount of traffic was staggering, and there didn’t seem to be an awful amount of parking, but as luck would have it, we finally managed to find a parking spot. For a moment I didn’t think we were going to.



Melrose Abbey was stunning. As soon as I entered the property I had a stupid grin on my face ~ I had finally made it here! My husband, bless him, knew how much I was looking forward to visiting Melrose, told me he would take care of the children while I took the audio tour. So while he and the kids went on a hunt for the bagpipe-playing Pig and other such notes of interest as pointed out by the children’s quiz, I took my time and explored the Abbey.  The audio tour brought the Abbey back to life for me, and I learnt a lot about the Cistercian monks and lay brothers that once lived there. I am sure this new knowledge will make its way into a book one day! 




We spent just over 3 hours at Melrose and I enjoyed every single minute of it. I could have spent longer there, but the road was calling us as our next stop over was in Ayr and that was a good three hours away.

First published on Myths Legends Books & Coffee Pots 03/10/2016


The Du Lac Princess
 (Book 3 of The Du Lac Chronicles)



Readers' Favorite 5 Stars
Chill with a Book Readers' Award 2018
Chill with a Book Cover of the Month 2018

The ink has dried on a Amandine's death warrant. Her crime? She is a du Lac.

All that stands in the way of a grisly death on a pyre is the King of Brittany. However, King Philippe is a fickle friend, and if her death is profitable to him, then she has no doubt that he would light the pyre himself.

Alan, the only man Amandine trusts, has a secret and must make an impossible choice, which could have far-reaching consequences — not only for Amandine, but for the whole of Briton.




Tuesday, February 27, 2018

Crystal Healing #OurAuthorGang

Crystal Healing
By Erika M Szabo

Did you have a rock or crystal collection when you were a kid? I had, and I was especially fascinated by sapphire. My aunt gave me sapphire earrings for my 6th birthday, hoping that being a tomboy, I would wear it and start to be interested in "girlish" things.

Well, it didn't turn me into a "girlish" girl, but I managed to free the stones from the gold setting and I held them often, rolling the smooth, oval-shaped gemstones between my fingers.
Perhaps I knew it by instinct that I'm prone to develop thyroid problems, asthma, and upper digestive tract problems? I may never know.

I believe there is a primal connection and we know it by instinct that holding certain color crystals make us feel better. Maybe that's why as grown-ups, we’re so enamored by crystals and gemstones.

Red and black 
Healing crystals: hematite, black obsidian, red zincite, garnet, and smoky quartz. 
Health problems: constipation, diarrhea, piles, colitis, Crohn's disease, cold fingers and toes, urinary frequency, hypertension (high blood pressure), kidney stones, impotence, hip and leg problems.

Orange
Healing crystals: orange calcite, vanadinite, and carnelian.
Health problems: pre-menstrual syndrome, problems with menstrual flow, uterine fibroids, ovarian cysts, irritable bowel syndrome, endometriosis, testicular and prostate problems.

Yellow
Healing crystals: citrine, yellow jasper, and golden calcite.
Health problems: diabetes, pancreatitis, liver disease, peptic ulcer, Celiac disease, and gallstones.

Pink & green
Healing crystals: rose quartz, tourmaline, aventurine, malachite, and jade.
Health problems: heart diseases, immune system related problems, possibly fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, allergies, and breast cancer.

Blue
Healing crystals: sodalite, blue calcite, blue kyanite, sapphire, and blue turquoise.
Health problems: Thyroid problems, anorexia, asthma, bronchitis, hearing problems, tinnitus, upper digestive tract problems, mouth ulcers, sore throats, and tonsillitis. 
Indigo
Healing crystals: lapis lazuli, azurite, and suqilite.
Health problems: tension headache, migraine, visual defects, short-sightedness, glaucoma, cataracts, sinus problems, and ear problems.

Violet, golden-white
Healing crystals: amethyst, white calcite, and white topaz. 
Health problems: depression, Parkinson's disease, Schizophrenia, Epilepsy, senile dementia, Alzheimer's, many mental disorders, confusion, and dizziness.

Are you fascinated by any specific color crystal or gemstone?
Besides being fascinated by Natural Healing, I write fantasy and children's books.  
Click to read my portfolio: http://online.pubhtml5.com/ahsh/mobl/

COMMENTS

Erika M Szabo via Google+

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Like crystals? Find out why :)
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Erika M Szabo via Google+

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Crystal Healing #OurAuthorGang
Crystal Healing By Erika M Szabo http://www.authorerikamszabo.com Did you have a rock or crystal collection when you were a kid? I had, and I was especially fascinated by sapphire. My aunt gave me sapphire earrings for my 6th birthday, hoping that being a t...
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Grace Au

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Love, love, love this post, Erika! I'm a total believer in the properties of crystals. I have a plate filled with different ones in different categories, as you've written. My favorite is rose quartz and my clear crystal quartz point that was given to me by a rock seeking friend from Arizona. They are beautiful and when they are cleansed and charged by the energy of the sun and/or moon, their appearance is incredible. Thank you so much for this post.
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It is fascinating that your favorite is rose quartz because it's related to immune system problems, possibly fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue. Keep it with you always :)
 
In my pocket! 😁

Rich Feitelberg

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
I have lots of these; one of the side effects of having a fantasy series featuring precious gems, people think you're into or collect rocks and crystals. I don't really but they look nice is a glass jar.
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I don't write about crystals in my fantasy series, I'm just fascinated by precious gems :)

Nikki McDonagh

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Very informative post , thanks, Erika.
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Mary Anne Yarde

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Such a wonderful and fascinating post, Erika!
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Toi Thomas

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
I was always fond of quarts; still am. What a cool post letting me know that my childhood rock collection may not have been all that childish.
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Ruth de Jauregui via Google+

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Erika shared her knowledge of crystals and healing with us today. Fascinating stuff!!
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Ruth de Jauregui

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Blue -- and wow, I have thyroid problems. Maybe I should get that bit of turquoise out again...
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Lorraine Carey via Google+

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Crystals have so the power to do unbelievable things! Great Post, here!
#healing #crystals
Erika M Szabo originally shared this
 
Like crystals? Find out why :)
 
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Rebecca Tran

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Need a little relief from your ailments this winter? Erika Szabo shares an interesting post on crystal healing on Our Author Gang today.
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Joe Bonadonna via Google+

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Today in A Small Gang of Authors, Erika M. Szabo​ talks about crystals and crystal healing, something very close to my heart. Truly fascinating!
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Eva Pasco

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
I was also fascinated by rocks and had a few collections.  To this day,  I love garnets.
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Joe Bonadonna

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Thank you for posting this, Erika. I find this very interesting. As you probably know, I started using crystals as part of my magic system. Fascinating stuff!
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Chris Weigand

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Wow cool stuff. I always try to explore different crystals and stones and minerals for my books so I can create unique places for my cultures to live. Amethyst has been one of my favorites for the caves of Dun Dealgan where the Mantion live.
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Chris Weigand shared this via Google+

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Rich Feitelberg shared this via Google+

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Eva Pasco via Google+

11 months ago  -  Shared publicly
Erika M Szabo originally shared this
 
Crystal Healing #OurAuthorGang
Crystal Healing By Erika M Szabo http://www.authorerikamszabo.com Did you have a rock or crystal collection when you were a kid? I had, and I was especially fascinated by sapphire. My aunt gave me sapphire earrings for my 6th birthday, hoping that being a t...
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