Silent Sister from Foxfire by Emily Holbert

Why, oh why, the thorn and the thread?
And wherefore the nettles and loom?
A sister in silence is stitching the shirts
But the ravens go flying so soon
Hold to the silence for three years more
The curses to break and the boys to restore
The sharp, quiet sting is the cost
And the hope for the brothers not lost

Why, oh why, the dirt ‘neath the nail?
And where came the soil on the hem?
And will she not tell us? And still she won’t speak
But the ravens are crying again.
Hold to the silence for three months more
The curses to break and the boys to restore
Now the is a small hole in the ground
Let the earth take my sorrow and sound

Why, oh why, the blood on the sheet?
And where went the babe from the bed?
I tried, I tried to fight back the sleep
But the ravens had flown off instead
Hold to the silence for three hours more
The curses to break and the boys to restore
As they’re leading me down to the fire
Will I find my salvation or pyre?

Hold to the silence for three minutes more
The curses to break and the boys to restore
My breath I will draw like a knife
To shake off our shackles and sever our strife
As ravens return with the shirts in the beaks
And I speak
Faith will win family free
Though one black wing still beats

• Celtic
• Folk
• faerie
• filk
• medieval
• Kitchener