Faeries Oracle

Card 59 - The Bodacious Bodach

Meddling. Tampering. Sabotage. "Helpful fixing." Order.

The Bodach (or Old Man, in Scots Gaelic) means well. He likes to "fix" things. He drops down chimneys at night and tidies up for you. If you don't have a chimney, he'll find another way in. You left a stack of papers on your desk? He'll file them for you - probably in someone else's desk. No one put away the uneaten roast beef? He'll assume you don't want it and give it to the neighbor's dog.

He is not the Faery who ties elf-locks in you hair and makes bits of it stand out in odd directions while you sleep. That is just a cousin of his, he has far more important work to do.

The Bodach is a meddler. He will tell you, it you catch him, that he means well.

It's just that things never turn out quite as he expects them to. He feels that you should be grateful for his so-called help (even while you clean the metaphorical eggs off of the metaphorical walls), and he is amazed when you are not. Although his feelings are easily hurt by your lack of appreciation, he is persistent. He will just redouble his efforts to be helpful. The only way to discourage him is to tidy up your own loose ends and clutter.

I'm Sure you know people like the Bodach. They helpfully answer your phone and take down the wrong message - then they lose it and give you a garbled verbal version. Worse yet, they give other people messages from you that are not exactly (or even nearly) what you said. On the rare occasion that they do pass something on accurately, it is either something you never meant to pass on or it is said specifically to the wrong person. The Bodach also likes to gossip.

The Bodach used to steal naughty children but has evidently decided they are not worth having. However, he does pinch them in their sleep sometimes and give them nightmares.

It is said that one can keep him away by putting salt on the hearth, but don't you believe it. He is like an ant - the only way to really keep him away is to not have anything around that might attract him. Tidy up your clutter - physical, mental, and emotional.

Starter Reading

Someone somewhere is meddling uninvited in the issue. It may be you, it may be someone else. See if you can work out who it is arid begin to untangle the messy web they have woven of confusion and disorder and misunderstanding (so much worse than our own natural disorder). It will take great firmness to get this person to keep his sticky fingers out of your affairs (or you to keep yours out of the affairs of others): The amount of tact you use in sorting this out is up to you, but the Bodach-type person doesn't usually notice hints. Remember, whoever it is says they mean well. They may even believe that. It is very hard to believe that the Bodach's bad results are always "just an accident," as he insists. He may believe this, but we don't have to. The word sabotage comes to mind. If you don't want the Bodach hanging around looking for ways to help, make sure you don't leave things in the wrong place or dangle any loose ends; he might find some bodacious things to do with them.

Reverse

Actually, the Bodach is one of the brownies, who mostly are helpful little spirits around the house. Every little once in a while, his essential brownie nature breaks through and he does truly helpful things. When he does this, reward him - or whoever it is in your life who normally gets it wrong and just this once has got it right. Gratitude and praise are in order. Maybe he'll even get it right next time, too.

The Faery Challengers