Midlothian Folk Tales for Children E-Book

Tim Porteus

• Herausgeber: The History Press
• Kategorie: Für Kinder und Jugendliche
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 131

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

Which misunderstood creature still lives in Leith, hidden away in their home? Who is the sleeping lady, resting under Roslin Castle after all this time? What man could sell his own sister's dead body? Where does the headless coachman steer his carriage on a stormy night? Did an ogre really stalk the Pentland Hills? What is the Portal Tree? These are just some of the secrets waiting to be discovered within this collection of sixteen folk tales. Stretching from the mysterious Moorfoot Hills all the way to the magical coast of Portobello, each story unearths a new place to visit and explore. Some tales are magical, some are historical, some uncover the mysteries of mythical creatures, some are about animals and some will help you find the magic hidden in everyday life.

Leseprobe

First published 2024

The History Press

97 St George’s Place, Cheltenham,

Gloucestershire, GL50 3QB

www.thehistorypress.co.uk

© Tim Porteus, 2024

The right of Tim Porteus to be identified as the Authorof this work has been asserted in accordance with theCopyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprintedor reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented,including photocopying and recording, or in any informationstorage or retrieval system, without the permission in writingfrom the Publishers.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 80399 544 1

Typesetting and origination by The History Press.

Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ Books Limited, Padstow, Cornwall.

eBook converted by Geethik Technologies

This book is dedicated to my wife Katharina Porteus, a wonderful mum and stepmum. For years she has been a constant and loving support to me and all our blended family in so many ways. This book would not have been possible without her help, understanding, ideas and encouragement.

Thank you, Katharina.

Katharina when we first met.

I’d like to acknowledge the debt I owe to Lea Taylor, who is an outstanding storyteller and good friend. Her book, Midlothian Folk Tales, preceded this book, and is a must read to anyone interested in the history or folk tales of Midlothian.

SUU CALEDONIA, COVER ILLUSTRATOR

I am a Scottish- born artist living in Midlothian. Having worked for many years as a driver/guide in the Highlands and Islands, I have lived and breathed in my country and am grateful for her constant inspiration and beauty. I am a self-taught artist and enjoy the organic process of creating and improving. There is always something new to discover. Rather like life itself.

You can follow me on:

Instagram @suucaledonia

Facebook @ Caledonia Calling Art.

Mòran taing. Thank you.

Suu Caledonia, 2024

I love the way each specific place gets a proper tale, full of magic and emotion. Tim’s joy in people and love of place shine through. I’ll take the stories back to these places that I also love. It’s a book everyone in Midlothian and Edinburgh should have!

- Donald Smith, storyteller

CONTENTS

Introduction from Tim

Foreword

1    Shellycoat of Leith

2    The Hedgehog of Vogrie Park

3    Olive’s Thruppence

4    The Twelve O’Clock Coachman

5    The ‘Ogre’ of the Pentlands

6    The Niddrie Ghost Hunters

7    The Selkie Sister

8    Douglas the Dog’s Escape in Dalkeith Country Park

9    The Castle that Leaked Dogs!

10    The Hidden Treasure of Roslin Glen

11    Body Snatchers in Penicuik

12    The Unicorn Hunt

13    Michael Scott and the White Serpent

14    The Portal Tree

15    The Leopard Hunt in Currie Wood

16    Joseph McIvor’s Famous Words

Acknowledgements

INTRODUCTIONFROM TIM

Thank you for opening my book, whether you’ve bought it, borrowed it from the library or it’s been a gift. Or maybe you’re just browsing in a bookshop wondering what’s in it.

It’s a collection of sixteen folk tales from Midlothian, including some from Edinburgh. They are all different. Some are based on history, some include mythical or magical creatures, some have animals, a couple are slightly scary and some have magic that is just everyday kind of magic, but I think that kind of magic is important.

If you read the stories in this book, I hope you enjoy them and get something from them. People often ask me if a story is true. I can say all the tales in this book have truth in them. But the truth in the story is something you need to find for yourself. Once you’ve read them, I hope you’ll know what I mean.

As well as being a storyteller, I’m a dad of five children. So, I asked them if they’d like to say something about the importance of stories. They all said yes, so they have written the foreword, which is over the page.

Thank you again,

Tim the Storyteller

[email protected]

FOREWORD

‘WHAT STORIES HAVE MEANT TO US’

BY MAIRI, MORVERN, MANJA,SKYE AND LEWIS

A foreword is not written by the author, but by someone else, to explain why they think people should read the book. So here my five children explain, in their own words, what stories have meant to them.

FROM MAIRI,TIM’S ELDEST DAUGHTER.

‘Choose a tree’, my dad told me in 2015 when I moved from home at the age of 17 and into Edinburgh University halls. I never did.

‘Choose a tree’, my dad told me in 2016 when I moved from those university halls to my first shared flat with friends. I never did.

‘Choose a tree’, my dad told me in 2017 when I moved into my first one-bed with my boyfriend. I never did.

‘Choose a tree’, my dad told me in 2019 when I moved out of that flat, heartbroken and in pieces, into my first one-bed in Edinburgh all on my own. I never did.

In 2022, seven years after my dad had first told me to choose a tree, I made the big move from Edinburgh to London to follow my very large dreams. I was in a big city where I knew no one, in a job way beyond my comfort zone and feeling a bit lost.

‘Choose a tree’, my dad told me again. ‘Say hello to it every day.’

One day I was walking around Hyde Park, as I lived close by. I thought, at this point, I have nothing to lose – so I chose the first tree that called out to me on my daily jaunt around the Serpentine and began acknowledging it every day.

This felt a bit ridiculous at first. However, saying a little hello to my tree soon became part of my routine.

Another day, feeling lost and confused (I can’t even remember why now), I was coming up to my tree. I spotted one solo magpie – ‘one for sorrow’, they say. This saddened me. I decided to stand in front of my tree for a moment and acknowledge it as I usually did.

This time, I felt something deep within. I could suddenly clearly feel the wind on my skin, I could hear the birds in the trees, the sound of the leaves moving in the breeze … I could feel the universe whispering, ‘Mairi, one magpie doesn’t determine how this day goes for you. That is up to you.’ I felt it so strongly, I could feel my whole perspective changing.

At that moment, I thanked the tree and began walking on, with my newfound perspective radiating from me.

I finally understood why my dad had told me to choose a tree for all these years. In a world where you don’t stop running around, staring at screens, feeling anxious and stressed, it becomes all too easy to disconnect not just from the world around you but also from your inner self. The simple act of acknowledging the same tree every day allowed me to harness a daily moment where I could reconnect to the natural world around me, and when I need it most, a deeper version of myself.

I guess my point in this foreword is to show the importance of true connection. For me now, it comes through a daily hello to my tree. But what I didn’t realise is that from the very beginning, my dad was preparing me for the big scary world, through tale telling in the mountains, selkie searching by the sea and faery finding in the woods. Storytelling was the key my dad used to develop that deep connection between myself and the world around me. It just took me quite a few years between moving out and moving to a new city, to finally be able to unlock it all by myself. Thank you, Dad, for a magical childhood and for secretly equipping me with the skills needed to design a life of true and meaningful fulfilment.

Now, if you’ve read this, please go and read these magical stories and when you are done – go and choose a tree.

Love from Mairi x

FROM MORVERN,TIM’S SECOND ELDEST DAUGHTER.

Having grown up, I’ve reflected on the years of my childhood, which were filled with stories from my dad. I have since come to see storytelling as a kind of superpower; a transformative ability which put a world of adventure and escapism at the edges of our imagination.

It was in my dad’s stories that I learned many of the lessons that would allow me to accept my identity as an adult; his stories taught me that women can be kings, boys can be faeries, and that beauty lies in our individuality.

Morvern x

FROM MANJA,AGED 14.

Dad often puts the emotions I’ve had during the day into his stories. They can help me talk about how I feel, and they calm me down. They have really good life lessons in them too. I love stories with life lessons in them, like how you should never give up on your passion. When it’s told well, the story builds up and gets more exciting, and that keeps me interested. Stories can help us understand how to be kind to other people and the planet. They help us teach ourselves these things. I think Dad is an amazing storyteller, I’ve seen him tell so many times at lots of different storytelling events. I like that many of his stories tell us that we can become better people and be kinder. People should know stories like that, they give us hope that better things are possible, but also remind us that good things are all around us and that helps us be thankful for them.

FROM SKYE,AGED 10.

Other parents might just say goodnight to their kids and turn out the light, or maybe read a book. But Dad reads a story and also tells them from his head! The stories he tells me usually fit in with my life. He puts lots of emotions, feelings and actions into every story. I love them! I like mythical stories and magical mysteries, also stories about wildlife. You always remember a good story! I can see the pictures in my head.

At bedtime I sometimes fall asleep in the middle of Dad’s story because his voice and the story are so calming. But I always want to know what happened and can ask him to tell it again the next night. Dad enjoys writing and is good at it, I think. The stories in this book will help kids with their feelings and help them not be on screens all the time.

Stories are for sharing and I love to see kids laugh and cry when Dad tells his stories, because it shows how they help us with our feelings. It makes me realise how many good stories must be out there and makes me want to read more books.

FROM LEWIS,AGED 8.

I like the way Dad tells a story. He spends time with me, and I learn things to stay safe. He’s a good storyteller! I love his stories about animals and nature, and ones with scary mythical creatures and monsters. I like it when I learn something important! I think stories help kids’ imagination to be bright. I also like when the cover of a book is good, it can also tell a story! Dad makes me feel like I’m helping him with stories when he talks to me about them. I also like telling stories and I might write a book one day too!

1

SHELLYCOAT OF LEITH

The tale of Shellycoat is a legend from Leith. It was said Shellycoat lived in a great boulder on the beach over 200 years ago and was a terrifying creature who would scare and play tricks on people. Some say Shellycoat is no longer in Leith.

Here, for the first time, Shellycoat reveals the true story of what happened.

Let me introduce myself, I’m called Shellycoat. I’m not human like you, but a water creature. I’ve lived on the shoreline of Leith for hundreds of years. I know that’s much longer than you humans live, but I’m still young, because I’m part of the faery world and can live a very long time. Although I live by the water, I can walk and breathe on land as well.

I get my name because I wear a coat woven with all types of shells; I like to use thin tellins, limpets, painted top shells, necklace shells, mussel shells, grey top shells, periwinkles, dog whelks, razor clams, oyster shells, limpets, cockles, blunt gapers, auger shells and many more.

Of course, I look different to humans, and because of that some people started calling me mean names. They called me ugly and a grotesque-looking goblin. Others said I was a dangerous and scary creature. I was even called a demon and a monster fiend by one man.

The people who said these things didn’t even know me. But unfortunately, the stories spread, and as a result, I became a target for those who wanted to taunt me. It became a tradition in Leith for both children and grown-ups to come to my home and deliberately annoy me.

My home was called the Shellycoat Stane. It was a huge, round boulder that sat on the sandy beach at Leith. Children and grown-ups would come to my home and run round it three times, shouting out:

Shellycoat, Shellycoat, gang awa’ hame,

I cry na’ yer mercy, I fear na’ yer name!

Then they’d run away, because, despite what they’d said, they did seem to fear me.

I know they thought it was fun, but it wasn’t fun for me. The chant really hurt my feelings, because ‘gang awa hame’ means ‘go away home’. Leith was my home, for as long as I could remember.

I got so fed up with the name calling and people saying untrue things about me that I wanted to get my own back. That’s why I started playing tricks and scaring people for revenge.

I’d hide on dark or misty nights and deliberately shake my shelly coat to make an eerie scraping and rattling sound, then I’d let out a terrifying scream. Another game I’d play was to pretend I was in trouble by calling out in distress, and watch people try to find me. I’d let out a loud and evil laugh when people realised they’d been tricked.

I didn’t care who I got my revenge on, because the cruel comments made me so mad with people. But I never meant to hurt anyone; I was just so fed up with the bullying. I just wanted people to be nice to me, or leave me alone.

Then one day, my life changed. I was at home in the Shellycoat Stane and a boy came and sat by it. I expected him to say unkind things like everyone else, then run away, but he didn’t. Instead, he spoke to me kindly. Nobody had ever done that before, and I didn’t answer him at first because I was afraid he was trying to trick me. I thought maybe I should scare him away.

But I’m glad I didn’t. Instead, I eventually plucked up the courage to trust him.

‘Hello,’ I said nervously.

‘Thank goodness,’ the boy said, ‘I didnae ken if you were there or even real, and was worried I was just talking to a rock!’

I laughed.

‘I’m real, and my name is Shellycoat,’ I said.

He told me his name was William, but I was anxious that he’d make fun of the way I looked, so I kept hidden.