"... And the dreadful wail of the Banshee could be heard throughout the halls and rooms of the house, and all those whose ears were touched by the mournful sound cringed in terror ..."

Beaders Beware! The Beading Banshee may soon visit your home! There is nothing you can do to keep her away! No special incantations or magic rituals will force her to abandon her duty! No matter what measures you may take, the Banshee will still find you and fill your heart and mind with the terrifying sound of her otherworldy keen of disaster.

You have all felt her presence before, although she has never been seen. She has been known to manifest herself in an audible wail, which spontaneously erupts from the throats of terrified beaders, but will more often be felt as a tightness in the chest and throat, or a sudden depression that falls like a heavy weight upon your shoulders.

Unlike the Banshee of Irish legends, the Beading Banshee does not manifest herself before a disaster. Would that we had such a warning and could take precautions! No, she will not give us such a boon. Instead, she makes it impossible to forestall the impending doom. Her appearance coincides exactly with that heart-rending instant when a beader realizes with horror that her precious tray of beads is tumbling uncontrollably to the floor.

The Banshee shares with you the sudden irrefutable knowledge that the next several hours (or days) will be spent salvaging beads from the carpet or floor, and that even more time will be lost as you sort out the beads that are now an unplanned melding of different colors, shades and textures.

Yes, the Beading Banshee really does exist, and I have heard her wail more than once!

Unfortunately, no matter how carefully you store your beads, or how many steps you take to avert disaster, there will still come that fateful day when you leave your bead tray just a hair too close to the edge of the table, or the family pet comes bounding playfully into the room to greet you, or a relative trips over an imaginary bump in the carpet, and once again the dreaded wail of the Banshee will be heard echoing through the halls of your home.

(copyright © 1997, Mary J. Winters-Meyer)