The Boy of Yesterday

It's difficult to search the internet for images of or information about Nuada without being knocked over by stuff about the Hellboy character of the same name. But with persistence, I managed to sift through the many photos of and fan art honouring Luke Goss to find some background on the mythic king. I have a thick volume about Celtic Myths and Legends by T.W. Rolleston, but wherever you go, what I read is all pretty much the same.

It is said that in Ancient Ireland, the Tuatha De Danaan contended with the Fir Bolg for possession of the land. During the first battle of Magh Tuiredh, a fight between heros ensued. Nuada, the king of the Tuatha De Danaan faced Sreng, the champion of the Fir Bolg. Even though Nuada lost his sword hand at the wrist, the Tuatha De Danaan were triumphant.

Dianchecht, the druid physician of the Tuatha De Denaan, prepared a bath of magical herbs and curative properties so that the wounded who were plunged into it would be made whole. However, the bath could not cure this king. In those days, it was required that a king be 'whole' in both body and mind, so despite being a much loved man, Nuada was forced to step down. The new king, Bres, brought much unhappiness to the people, so to solve the problem and restore rightness to the throne, Dianchecht fashioned a new arm for Nuada out of silver. It was as good as any other and therefore, he was fit to become king once again. Problem solved. This seems to be the basis of the story from what I have read.

In today's card, the subtitle is 'perfection' and I guess we are being asked to think about what that means to us. Nuada was chosen for this card because he knew only too well that one doesn't need to be perfect to be good at his job. In the accompanying guidebook to this deck, Demarco speaks about society's chase for perfection in the exterior and I think I can relate to that to some extent. I don't think I am opening my arms to age particularly well. I can appreciate the beauty of aging in others, but not in myself. A few more pounds on the waistline is not something I am used to, as I search desperately in the mirror for the boy of yesterday. It's funny how I was never happy with my looks ten years ago, or even ten years before that, but how I look back now and see them as a wasted kind-of-perfection lost in time. You never appreciate what you have got until it has gone, I suppose.

There seems to be a lot wrapped up in today's card - be it the loss of something, the gaining of something new, or all that sits in between. Nuada was a good leader, regardless of whether he had a hand or not. Maybe the same can be acknowledged in beauty and other aspects of life. I look at someone like Madonna and feel sad about the amount of plastic surgery she has had. She is starting to look like one of those puffed-up and frozen-faced weirdos you see buzzing about in Los Angeles, desperately chasing the years of youth now passed. I always thought she'd be the kind of woman who'd embrace maturity with .. well .. maturity. I thought she'd wave her lace glove at cosmetic surgery, as women like Twiggy and Barbara Winsor have (and don't they look great to have done so), but now, the stranger looking she becomes, the less we think about her talent and all she has achieved. If you want an example, look at what Joan Rivers has done to herself for Christ's sake! But who am I to comment, as I sit here, feeling like James Dean and looking more like E.T? Today's card has been a bit of a kick up the butt. What we lose in the physical, we probably gain in other ways. With those gardening skills, does it really matter how beautiful E.T was or wasn't?

There is a chill in the air today. I haven't seen my boyfriend in three days. His train was delayed last night, so by the time he got home, it was hardly worth him coming over. I am much more relaxed about those kind of things these days. In fact, it makes me look more forward to seeing him tonight. I am going over to Kate's later and he is going to join me there in the evening. A couple of other friends may be joining us at her little cottage for a few drinks and a catch-up. So aside from a house viewing to prepare for, I have little else to do. The couple from the weekend said our house is too small, so it looks as if they are a no-go, so lets hope our home is able to woo whoever is visiting this afternoon.


Illustration from The Gods and Titans Oracle by Jimmy Manton