May 3rd, 2025
"How far have you walked?"
"A long way"
"What brings you here"
"A song"
Ahoy there!
I’m back with news of The Mermaid. Not any mermaid, but the Mermaid. That was the message wasn’t it? “Listen closely, Don’t be afraid. Find the Mermaid.” Well, I have a confession to make. I already knew who the Mermaid was.
You know those Winds of Change I was talking about? When they come, there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it. Like a great storm. Like a wild fire. Like the death of a friend. It comes unannounced and uninvited and the consequences are life shattering. No doubt, you know what I’m talking about. Well that’s what happened to me. I didn’t really have a choice. I was just heartbroken and lost and at the beginning of something I didn’t understand at all.
But then one night, I heard a song and without warning, the tears came. I was on land but my heart was at sea and I was swimming. I was down in my grief looking up at the sun glistening on the waves.
“I heard thee sing in the church above the ocean
I heard thee sing my pretty boy
Far from my salty palaces
I have come to thee my pretty boy…”
The melody felt like it was pulled straight out of the sea just for me. Every note had the soaring wings of seabirds plummeting down to the deepest ocean caves.
Who was she singing too? Who was he singing too? Where was this church above the ocean? And why did it have such a powerful affect on me? I didn’t know and I didn’t care. I just wanted it to play again. It was my siren song and I was going to follow her wherever she was leading me.
I couldn’t tell you how it happened. All I can say is that it didn’t happen overnight. It was a journey and I walked every step of the way. I slept in old churches and village halls and shepherd huts. I cried and sang and prayed. I was filled with joy and little terrors too. But mostly, I was filled with wonder. Through bright field and dark forest I made my way on foot across the holy lands of Cornwall until I found her.
It was almost noon when I arrived in the village of Zennor. Apart from the church and the pub there was nothing around for miles except a few farmhouses. I felt far away from everything and relieved to finally have arrived and be able to put down my heavy bag.
After checking into the Inn, I went to visit the church of St Senara just a few steps away. Above the door hung a fishing net to keep the birds out. I lifted the net, turned the heavy iron handle and slowly stepped inside.
It was a small church and it smelt of stone and wood and sweetness. The ceiling was shaped like the bottom of a boat and colorful hand-knitted kneelers lined each of the benches. To the right, in a little side chapel sat a 600 year old chair, dedicated to the memory of a young man named Matthew Trewhella “the best singer in the parish”. Carved into the side of the chair was an image of a Mermaid. The Mermaid. The Mermaid of Zennor.
They say she came to hear him sing. Nobody knew who she was or where she came from. But she was beautiful and otherworldly and had a presence that made them feel a little otherworldly themselves. One Sunday, while Matthew was singing, another voice started to join in. It was the stranger among them who had never uttered a word. Now her voice was lifted in song with his and the whole church was swaying. It was the most beautiful thing they had ever heard. It was the sound of the land and the sea. The grassy fields and the salty waves. It was the sound of the time-less and the time-bound. The Divine and the earthly. It was the sound of love.
On the way out of the church, I picked up a prayer card for St Senara and made my way to the cove where Matthew Trewhella was last spotted swimming away with the woman of the waves. I sat there for a long time looking out at the water hoping to catch a glimpse of them. I thought about the last few years and the miles I had walked to get there. I thought about the grief that I came to know. And the gift it had also given me.
There, in that village by the sea, in that church above the ocean, I finally found the Mermaid. And something else found me too. I wasn't searching anymore. I had arrived. And I was exactly where I was meant to be. Little did I know, something completely magical and unexpected was about to happened next.
But that is a story for another time…
Spring is in the air, summer is a-comin’ and our ship is about to set sail! Where we’re going next? Well…you’ll soon find out. Until then…
May your soul always recognize the divinity in another;
May your heart embrace the gifts of grace each has to offer,
And hear the song within even the humblest sea shell.
May you find joy in each others laughter,
And peace in each others eyes.
May the tide carry you to the shores of imagination,
In a boat made of your most precious dreams.
May all your prayers be answered,
As you write them in the sand.
The Prayer of St Senara.
Yours faithfully,
Natasha (aka Miss Nati)
P.S. If you'd like to listen to The Mermaid then click here. Happy swimming...
