"The Woods" by San Fermin

This song doesn't sound that scary but there's something about the lyrics that disturbs me. Two children - I picture a boy and a girl - go into the woods. And one of them ends up dead. The song is sung by the boy, the one who died. No one knows what happened to him. It reminds me of what happened to those poor boys in Robin Hood Hills. You may be familiar with the case. Three teens (now known collectively as the West Memphis Three) were wrongfully convicted because they were weird and listened to metal and one of them was vaguely interested in witchcraft. All because of people's preconceived notions. The West Memphis Three were recently released after entering Alford pleas, which allows them to assert their innocence even though the evidence presented was enough to persuade a jury/judge. The townspeople's narrow-minded prejudice stole nearly 20 years of those men's lives, and it's unlikely we'll ever find out who actually killed those three children. It makes a sad story even more tragic.

Another thing that this song reminds me of is the interview Gemma Gary did for "Down at the Crossroads," a pagan podcast I like to listen to. Gary wrote a book called "The Devil's Dozen: Thirteen Craft Rites of the Old One" and she was doing the rounds promoting it. Gary practices Traditional Witchcraft and specializes in the folktales and methods of Cornwall. In the interview, she lamented a lot of modern neo-pagan traditions (specifically Wicca) aversion to the Old One, which conforms to the Christian idea of the Devil. However, in traditional folk belief, the Devil merely represented the chaos inherent within nature. In the Catholic Church, though, anything that could not be controlled was bad. One of the more vivid parts of the interview that caught my imagination was Gary describing an old initiation rite for witches in the middle ages. A young woman would wander into the woods (or another secluded place) at night, disrobe, and lie down. She'd stay there for hours. Historically, this was an incitement for Satan to come and fuck her and, thus, imbue her with magical powers. But Gary offered an alternate explanation - in this state, you're at your most vulnerable. Lying naked on the grass, fear takes hold, but you stay there long enough to trust that whatever magical/divine force is out there will take care of you. You stay out there until you're no longer afraid, because you can't do magic if you have fear in your heart. From the research I've done, that seems to be a common theme throughout the mystical arts, regardless of the culture they evolved within.

I think the woods are scary for a lot of people. It's dark, wild, and things could be hiding in there. I'm not one of these people. I love the woods. I always wanted to live somewhere close to a forest, like where lived on Ft. Meade. Somewhere to hide that wasn't in my house. And I love trees, so having a whole bunch of trees in one place must be even more amazing.

We went, the two of us into

The woods behind the little school

Two went in and one came home

We didn't go in there alone

Your eyes were lovely as you danced

With centipedes and little ants

We built a fort of lover's teeth

And some of mother's sheets

I was a boy and I was good

But there are witches in these woods

I bought the book, if you're wondering. The hardcover version is very pretty - it's embossed with a depiction of the Old One in a bronze foil. Haven't tried any of the rites yet - I guess it was more of an academic interest. A lot of the "rites" have found their way into modern neo-pagan rituals - like Walking the Wheel, which is a common way to raise energy if you have a lot of people participating. It surprised me how beautiful Gemma Gary was. I had only heard her voice in the interview - she's very soft-spoken, with a slight Cornish accent, which I found more charming than the usual British accent. I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't the striking woman in the publicity pictures. Not that it matters, it's just something that surprised me. Regardless, the interview is fascinating, as is the book.

"The Woods" Video