Today’s word is bawkie. I’m just going to sit here and do a wee bit lalalalala because as I discovered earlier this year, I’m not a fan of bawkies.
Okay, so bawkie generally refers to bats, you know, the winged variety. My unease (it’s not full-on fear) of them was a shock because I’ve been in touching distance of one before while on a school trip to New Lanark. I didn’t touch the cute wee thing as it’s illegal to do so in Scotland unless you’re licensed.
I think my unease comes from the fact that these bats were flying, and their wings were way too close to me in the early hours. Whereas the one I met as a kid was tucked safely in its handler’s hand. No wings flapping, no low flybys, no following me around with malicious intent. I may have a problem with things that fly near me 🤔.
And back to the definition.
Bawkie also means spectre, ghost, and apparition. You know those wee winged seeds from sycamore trees? They’re bawkies, too.
Well, that’s it for today’s #Scotstober post. See you tomorrow 😊

When I was a kid we had a cat that caught bats and brought them in the house occasionally. Funny what you remember.
Oh, gods, no! 😱 🤣 Yeah, it really is funny what you remember. I totally forgot about meeting the bat as a kid, until the ones this summer.
Grim Carl: liked this. via twitter.com
RobMcInroy: liked this. via twitter.com
Chris wackett: liked this. via twitter.com
BOO-dhipaksa 🎃 (Bodhipaksa): liked this. via twitter.com
michael dempster: liked this. via twitter.com
Diane Anderson: #Scotstober Day 19 #Bawkie susantbraithwaite.com/2021/10/19/sco… via twitter.com
michael dempster: #Scotstober Day 19 #Bawkie susantbraithwaite.com/2021/10/19/sco… via twitter.com
Shelf Dog: liked this. via twitter.com
Anne: liked this. via twitter.com
Declan D: #Scotstober Day 19 #Bawkie susantbraithwaite.com/2021/10/19/sco… via twitter.com
michael dempster: #Scotstober Day 19 #Bawkie susantbraithwaite.com/2021/10/19/sco… via twitter.com
Declan D: liked this. via twitter.com
Rachel Connor: liked this. via twitter.com
Dr Maggie Scott: liked this. via twitter.com
Candy mountain song, Charlie 🤣
The song of power and nae fear!
I encountered bawkies hanging from a ceiling in a cave during a guided visit and also flying in parks. For me, it always is a beautiful experience but I had friends who got creeped out. I think this is because the bats seem to make no sound and also barely move the air around them. So it feels like something in the dark that we cannot detect easily. It activates our warning system. The reason why I do not feel theratened is that I feel a connection to them as beings. (That also helps me with my arachnophobia – doesn’t always prevent the grue-reaction but allows me to be calmer. – After all, it’s not the spiders’ fault that my system has a reaction to their shape.)
That sounds like an amazing experience. Though, your description of bats moving through the air just made my whole body react. 😰
This is going to sound insane, but try talking to the spiders. I started doing that when I was really young, naming them, talking to them when I took them outside. (I fully agree, their shape is disturbing 😁 )
Talking to the spiders does not sound insane to me, at all. I actually do (also started as a young age – before the phobia began). 🙂 – This is the reason why I felt like sharing my comment. <3 And – I fully understand your physical reaction on the bats. We cannot control that, if it happens. Sorry that I triggered it, again.
My reaction was a compliment–your description was so good it got a viseral reaction from me. 🤩
💗