(For decades, local historian and paranormal investigator
George “Buster” Singleton published a weekly newspaper column called “Somewhere
in Time.” The column below, which was titled “Sirius, the Dog Star, returns”
was originally published in the Aug. 9, 2001 edition of The Monroe Journal in
Monroeville, Ala.)
As the dawn broke across the heavens on Saturday morning,
July 28, the reign of Sirius, the Dog Star, began.
For a total of 40 days, which end Sept. 5, many events may
happen that we give little or no thought to.
In our society of fairyland and make believe, we have forgotten
almost all of the old folk tales that were handed down through the past
generations.
On this certain day in July, the Dog Star will take its
place between our earth and the sun for a period of 40 days. Many events that
we take for granted will change or disappear from the skies above us.
Many happenings in our everyday lives will change or make a
turn around during this period of time. With our lives and entertainment
centered around the boob tube, we might travel through this period and not be
aware that anything has changed.
The dog star does not appear on the same day in July each
year. It can appear as early as the 20th of July and as late as the
28th of the month. The few who think they known something of this
event think that Sirius appears always on the 28th of July; this is
not true. The position of the planets above relate the date of Sirius’
appearance in the heavens.
For example, should it rain on the first day of Dog Days,
the legends states that it will rain for the remaining 40 days. If it should be
dry on that first day, then the countryside will suffer a 40-day drought.
Another legend is that all snakes go blind during this period.
Being unable to see and search for food, this causes them to become short-tempered
and hungry. They will strike blindly at the slightest sound or movement,
causing the risk of getting snake bit to be much greater to those who wander in
the thick underbrush or tall weeds.
Another story is that milk cows give less milk during this
time. Hogs and cattle, dogs and various other animals that are born during Dog
Days are less likely to survive than those born at other times during the year.
It is said that dogs are more likely to go mad or grow
vicious during the reign of Sirius. Among us humans, our tempers tend to grow
shorter and less patience is shown to those who cross us. Cuts and bruises are
slower to heal during this time; our bodies seem to lose much of its
resistance, and we become weaker during the passing of this evil star.
Infection and fever blisters are said to be more common
during this time as the devil star makes its journey across the heavens. An
early Indian legend has it that the cool fresh drinking water found in the fresh
water springs along the hillsides are less pure during the time when Sirius is
on the prowl.
The early Indian paid a lot of attention to the coming of
the Dog Star. If at all possible, much of the crops that could be harvested
were gathered and brought out of the fields before the arrival of Sirius.
If, during this 40 days, the weather was wet and rainy, legend
has it that the thunder was more severe and the lightning that flashed across
the darkened skies was more likely to strike the earth and cause damage to the
villages along the rivers and streams.
The medicine men or the wind walkers of the tribes watched the
heavens closely during this time, so they could warn their people of the
dangers to come. They also believed that the spirits of the departed were more
apt to wander on the winds of the evening during the reign of the devil star.
As the members of the tribes gathered around the evening
fires, prayers were raised to the Great Spirit to ward off the curse of the
devil star. This 40-day period was truly a time of mystery for the early Indian
who roamed the hills and flatland of our area. Much of their life was based
around this period of the year and the signs that they looked for as the Dog
Star made its way across the heavens.
Much of their religion was focused around this star that
roamed at will between the early and the sun. They watched the heavens, and
they watched the rivers, knowing that the mystery star would have great affect
on their search for food in the deep waters of the great rivers. Living off the
land as they did, all signs of the heavens were very important to their
everyday living.
Today, in our modern lifestyles, we hear very little about
the mystery signs and goings on within our universe. We pay little or no
attention if it rains for 40 days or if it stays dry for this same period of
time. We pay little or no attention to the heavens on a clear night during the
month of August when the full moon hangs high in the heavens.
If it does not appear on our television sets, most times we
know nothing of the happenings above us. Once in a great while one might find a
calendar that shows the start of the period of Dog Days. There was a time when
much of the life of the local country folks was based on the signs of the heavens
and what the Almanac had to say about the planting and growing of crops.
Much was also done in regards to the signs of the moon. No
farmer in their right mind would begin to plant his crops if the signs were not
right. From planting corn to killing hogs, it all bordered on the signs of the moon.
Even though the coming of the Dog Star was much surrounded in mystery, many of
the older citizens of the farm communities kept an eye toward the heavens,
hoping to know in advance what was about to happen next.
I don’t profess to be smart, but as I wander around the countryside
and talk to the younger generation of our society about certain happenings and
signs in the skies above to look for, I see total disinterest. Very few care
whether it rains for 40 days unless it interferes with a trip to the beach or
some local event of entertainment.
None of our youth of today know how to search for food that
they can eat in the deep forests of our area or along the banks of our rivers.
I am not a fatalist by no means, but it frightens me to know that our youth
know totally nothing about how to survive if worst came to worst.
In writing this article, I do not intend to preach my
readers a sermon. I do believe that we, as creatures of this universe, should
strive to learn all we can about this world that we live in and the heavens
above it.
If we disregard the signs that have been placed here for us
to see and abide by, we are doomed to roam forever in a world that has no meaning.
If we try to understand that which is around us, our lives will be richer and
many facts of the unknowns will come to life and even be helpful in our journey
through time and distance.
As July 28 has come and gone take time to look and learn all
you can about that devil star and the effect its journey across the heavens has
on man and his surroundings.
Don’t be afraid to seek out a high hill on a night of the
full moo and watch the heavens. It will surprise you what you will be witness
to.
Let us not journey through this life without learning as
much as we can about this universe – this universe we call home.
(Singleton, the author
of the 1991 book “Of Foxfire and Phantom Soldiers,” passed away at the age of
79 on July 19, 2007. A longtime
resident of Monroeville, he was born to Vincent William Singleton and Frances
Cornelia Faile Singleton, during a late-night thunderstorm, on Dec. 14, 1927 in
Marengo County, graduated from Sweet Water High School in 1946, served as a
U.S. Marine paratrooper in the Korean War, worked as a riverboat deckhand,
lived for a time among Apache Indians, moved to Monroe County on June 28, 1964
and served as the administrator of the Monroeville National Guard unit from
June 28, 1964 to Dec. 14, 1987. He was promoted from the enlisted ranks
to warrant officer in May 1972. For years, Singleton’s columns, titled “Monroe
County history – Did you know?” and “Somewhere in Time” appeared in The Monroe
Journal, and he wrote a lengthy series of articles about Monroe County that
appeared in Alabama Life magazine. It’s believed that his first column appeared
in the March 25, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal. He is buried in Pineville
Cemetery in Monroeville. The column above and all of Singleton’s other columns
are available to the public through the microfilm records at the Monroe County
Public Library in Monroeville. Singleton’s columns are presented here each week
for research and scholarship purposes and as part of an effort to keep his work
and memory alive.)
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