Samhain(part 2)Summer's End-Winter is here

Again it was cold and bright and then warmer and grey.

Now we are surrounded by cloud, 

which seems appropriate.

I think this surrender of and to time is what we may call life.

So it helps to do so with love.

Looking at the pics, I realize there were still leaves on the trees then.

Now we are in the long season of bare tree limbs framing the sky

and evergreens.

Not sure how this wheel of the year keeps turning without us falling off, 

but grateful to still be standing. 

Already I can sense the lengthening of the light approaching, 

even as we are in the darkest of nights. 

We anticipate forward and look back.

So then was before the election and at the end of the harvest.

The rush of autumn blowing through us like the winds and the wyrrd.

Senses of dread and fear bolstered by acts of kindness and fortitude.

The wholeness of all of our ancestors coming for a visit. 

The wholeness of deep sleep.

The finality of the end.

I don't have lots of notes from ritual and the whole idea of documentation,

like hosting,
was hard for me then and maybe still is.
According to my notes it is something I needed to think about then and maybe still do.

 

What is this setting the table and the land to welcome and to honor the Kindreds?

What is the dance that we do not know we are doing?

What does it mean to be open?

 We made a fire before everyone showed up, which was good, since we had so much rain.

We had lots of food but few pictures of it all.

We had 3 very different Elizabeths,

and children and teachers, and children grown, and childlike grown-ups, and parents of all kinds.

Many folks who had never been here and many spirits all around.

We had boisterous laughter and keening sorrow.

There was the wandering of lost souls and our fire to guide the way.

There was an ungroundedness which caught in my belly and made me suddenly weak.

She went to the garden and gave an offering to take from the Gods that which I needed,

now part of their harvest, and brewed tea. 

There was note pads for letting go and origami to unclutter the mind.

Feasting before feasting and drinking all around.

There were no birds, no wild life interruptions.

There was a sonic dissonance in the air,

at first.

And then we began, most folks crowded in the North-West of the circle

with the wind blowing into the South.

The fire roared for all our dead as we mourned what had left us.

And also for the doors that will open.

And at the end of final praise offerings- is there anyone else who has praise for the season?-

a car has driven up and 3 people come down the walkway and they are standing in the circle of light from the motion-sensor bulb and they don't come to the fire and maybe they are spirits

but I run around the circle because I can only go one direction when inside and go to them

and they ask for my son, who does happen to be here, but no one comes by our rural road in the dark looking for my kid and he comes out of the circle and it turns out to be canvassers making sure

he had a plan to vote.

And that was a powerful omen.

So even though there was much sorrow we had a lot of giddy laughter too. 

Nervous energy of the day turning into night.

Sparktastic fire igniting our heart.

 

our omens

from our Ancestors: the Horse or Ehwaz, the connection between horse and rider, that empowerment, the ability to travel and do things and that partnership with another life form.

Mobility, before engines and the whole automobile thing, where we were at was the horse. 

And today with our mechanized robot menaces.

it is that kind of partnership with how things were done before.

from the Spirits of Nature & Place: WUNJO or JOY! Joy to the world! And particularly the joy of the company and coming from the spirits it is one of simple enjoyment and finding joy.

from the Gods & Goddesses: Tir or the Spiritual Warrior, having to do with truth and justice and balance and direction and upward and upright, guiding directive.

For Bryan it was the whole North Star thing.

for the Season:Thurisaz or thorn or Thor's hammer, protection, a prickly outside, lock on the door.

Go boldly forward with joy and truth and safety.

I'll take it.

The sky had gone from bright to deep blue.

We took in the waters.

We gave our thanks, 

the rest of everything.  

We came back and feasted more.

Otherworldly interconnections like a dream.

Energies of passages.

Folks in the dark.

Compelled later to burn sweetgrass and sage

throughout and around the house.

There is never enough that can be offered in gratitude

and it is important to also offer that gratitude to the self.

 

the Gods & the not-Gods: Lughnasad Ritual

much work and schedule and timing and stuff and energy

So I get home in time to just start and unwind a bit
from the day, the week, the season
and then he arrives and Bryan is making coffee
and we put out all the snacks as food
and she arrives
though by the good fortune of the spirits of awareness
leaves soon after
and we gather and eat and catch up and then she arrives
and we talk more.

Teenager opting out and relaxing in our room with the cats after two weeks of work and obligation.

Stories of life and family and then of Lugh and his family
the interconnections of us all and the retelling of stories and stories of stories.

We are as always days before engaged 
in conscious and unconscious ritual and ritual prep,
the thoughts of the holiday as worship,
the planning of time as rite and ceremony.

Sometimes one forgets, especially in the hubbub
and the daily grind and the electronic devices
and the commitments,
the need for organized special reverence and gratitude.

But the body and spirit don’t forget.

beer offering through the woods for the woods
very centered meditation
feeling in the body, the earth, the water, the air

lumpy milk Earth Mother offering
Bryan welcoming the directions and I see
ripening elderberries in the West
and call out healing to go alongside conflict in the North.

the last of our cherries for Bridget,
a whole loaf of bread flung in slices for the outdwellers.
Smoldering sweetgrass.

beer for the gates and for Mananan
small flickering flame then steady and strong
but not scary

  our apples for our Kindred
a glowing cauldron soup of fruit and broth and prayers
and gratitude

all kinds of gratitude for gifts of harvest
prayers for good harvest
honoring family

giving all our sacrifice,
chocolates, beer, sage, flowers, fruit
even our thank you offerings-
when honoring gratitude for harvest 
put everything in there was a single glowing cloud overhead

Bryan shuffled the omens 

 So first Bryan drew virtue cards and then runes.

From the Ancestors: the virtue card was Hospitality and the rune was Isa or ice. Made me think of a hostess offering a chilled beverage on a hot day.

From the Spirits of Nature & Place: the virtue card was Vision and the rune was the one for horse or the relationship between horse or vehicle & rider. Like what you see when you are in tune with yourself and nature or like if you were up on a horse how you could see a bit farther.  

From the Gods & Goddesses: the virtue card was Perseverance and the rune was Wunjo or JOY!


For the Season: the virtue card was Wisdom and the rune was Ansuz or the voice.

So yeah it’s all good.

offering thanks with our blessed waters.
so grateful and moved.
released by the closing meditation into our bodies.
bird calls throughout.

finding our way back
through the disorienting less wooded woods
making dinner out of side dishes and snacks
and talking long into the dark.

Full-on Summer: a recap of the busyness in and around solstice-it’s a long season

Each day is overbooked and hot. It has torrentially rained for a week or more, though these last days have had more sun than rain. And it is hot. Sweat pouring into your eyes hot.
Tropical hot. Even in the shade, waiting for a breeze to stir. Gratefully loving cloud cover. Cloud cover without rain.

But the woods and the brook are cool.
Sitting on a rock in the middle of the water rushing over my feet is normalizing.
does it ever stop this nonstop summer season?
lists over lists, and every day events we miss.
Circling the wagons in our overgrown land,
full of summer and flowers and bugs.
Having the option to just be,
to lay in bed and read summer homework,
or roll like the cat,
or pace or stretch or cry or laugh
or babble like the brook or sing.
Thinking that maybe summer is doing all the things to prepare for winter,
and winter is dreaming of summer.

It rained and was cool for ever.
All of June we had  jackets or shawls out.
Just in case.
Now even the loosest clothes are too much and though the earth and wood remain constantly wet. we cannot get enough water in or on us.

Spiraling days, nights, dreams, visions manifest.
Tumbling into each other.

Ok so it all began when she died.
She who was his mother, their mother, 
everyone’s mother.
She was the mother of
my brother-from-another-mother.
She raised us all.

Her sudden death was stupefying.
She was life force itself and
this whole  community was from her heart.
From her I learned womanhood-
mother, artist, sister,
breadwinner, hostess, kindness,
visionary, sustainer, crone.

Her eyes were the brightness of the sun and moon combined, and her smile was direct from the heart.

Summer and love go hand in hand.
Through the field & flowers and to the stream.
We turn our faces towards the sun,
and feel ourselves grow, heliotropic
with these endless days and large moons.
     It started the last week of school, we were preparing for Clearwater festival art & camping, finishing art nature projects and classes, launching the website and new businesses, getting ready for our anniversary and solstice and jumping on construction and repairs on our place. Fortunately, long days let you cram it all in. Real life keeps you real.

Driving rain and driving distances and many people gathering in many places.

Notes written just after our MidSummer Solstice ritual:
everything all at once is summer.
connections and reconnections summer.
leaves hang still and dark and green summer.
old friends, growing children
home & technology
invisible deck made visible
keeping up with the lists

flowers endlessly bloom
all the roses, smiling daisys, giant wisteria, valerian and mallow and sweet clover. The last peonies harvested for sacrifice before the rains took them all.


Cycles of seasons-
the days of oppressive heat here and by Yule this extended abundance of life and light
will be only in our hearts and memory.

the week started with exhaustion and love,
naps and slack,
a normal rain storm after days of deluge ones.
the garden grows on its own with makeshift and handwoven fences.
Daylight is at 5am and it is dark well after 9pm.

Even with or maybe because of these long days, time is fleeting and fragile. 7pm feels like the afternoon and summer vacation hours apply.

Each day of that week was full of endings and beginnings and reassembling.
Friends and family and plans and changing plans.

When we started this (family, grove, home)we had many plans and they’ve changed slightly or subtly or completely or not at all-
interrelationship of time and space.

Massive cleaning in slow motion, friends making dinner together, eating before ritual, fire set in the circle near the house, near the new deck, home.
We made our wreaths of grapes and flowers
during the extended pre-ritual family-style summer gathering party-like filled with smiles.

We started and it was day
and we ended and it was night.

I cannot find the words to describe the power of connections and the love of friends.
Or maybe it is the power of friends and the love of connections.
Or maybe it is the power of love and the connections of friends.
Or maybe all of the above.
 

Bryan’s long-time druid buddy, grove member from his old grove and kindred spirit of art and performance, the father of his god-daughter and his true friend was visiting from the West Coast and came with his family for Solstice. Uncle Bill.
Katrina & Eric, country-style neighbors who each met Bryan separately, came with flowers and food and leaving their daughter sick at home. As friend-family and grove-family, Katrina easily helps organize and assemble
and readies food and things.
 
Kevin arrived, as I knew he would, now having celebrated 3 years of Solstices with us. He found us through a listing of our grove on an English druid site.

And finally, long time brother M and soul-sister B arrived. Transplants from the old days, who each found their way up here and through me have become friends with each other.

Flowers for offerings, flowers in our hair, flowers surrounding us
swaying in gentle breezes.

pre-rit finished, instruments out for use, everyone sitting, fire stoked, sacrifice set,
we begin.

         the stick with bells and the gong,
our call to ritual

Children of great friends, children of cool Druids,
gather and wait for adults to gather
and play thumb pianos setting the tone for and holding space during ritual.

            

   

Offering milk and grahams crackers to the directions, welcoming in new energies, the moon, old friends and the other side of the year.

Beer for our Earth Mother and our sacred tree and herbs for our fire and resonant sound for our magical well.

the bucket, filled from the waterfall earlier (hoping to get some fish), filled our well pot with a slowly extended pour like more and more clowns from out of a small car into our well.

Bill led a tree meditation with the sounds of rustling leaves and bird calls.
We are still and strong and vertical and alive like the trees.

circling round the fire with bowls of flower petals for each of the kindreds.

Each person offering praise and prayers and poems and even tears.
Sparky herbs from Yule lighting and flaring-
sparky good health for us all
boy offering his wreath
girl offering silence
everyone offering gratitude and love

Katrina shared Tom Bombadil’s song, transcribed by her daughter,
and placed and replaced around the circle, 
using the echo-mic for amplification.

  “Hop along, my little friends, up the Withywindle!
Tom's going on ahead candles for to kindle. Down west sinks the Sun: soon you will be groping.
When the night-shadows fall, then the door will open,
Out of the window-panes light will twinkle yellow.
Fear no alder black! Heed no hoary willow!
Fear neither root nor bough!
Tom goes on before you.
Hey now! merry dol!
We'll be waiting for you!”
-J.R.R. Tolkien

  Night grew blue and deep,
the fire blazed with final sacrifice,
spirits shining in flame and smoke  

  


  





Our Omens

  from the ancestors: Gibor- the gift or giver or giving, that whole reciprocal relationship
from the spirits of nature & place: Jera or harvest or a year’s cycle or a duration of a contract
from the Gods & Goddesses: Laguz or the Lake, drawing up the waters from below, the vitality from within the earth
for the season: Wunjo or Joy or the company of good friends

Our Ogham
from the ancestors: Black Thorn- no choice
from the spirits of nature & place: Reed- might mean actual medicine but has to do with flexibility and a low broad base
from the Gods & Goddesses: Holly- the vitality and the fire, the life force
for the season: the Apple Tree- the joy of the afterlife and also love
The Virtues from the ancestors: Fertility
from the spirits: Hospitality
from the Gods & Goddesses: Wisdom
for the season: Moderation
   
Now we have had almost 2 weeks of 90+° weather and no rain for more than a week.
we had hoped to dry out but not with so much dehydration.
Air conditioning or fans offer the only coolness, the only means of rest, we have little appetite and dreams return.
Clearing and washing down and airing out.

The garden begins to yield harvest,
farms in the valley have corn and tomatoes.
Up here the lilies and roses are almost done, daisys now fade as the suzys take over,
phlox and elecampane start their high summer blossom and the hibiscus, pitcher plant and rose of sharon will have flowers shortly.
I know the leaves will turn sooner than I expect, and these unbearably hot days, even now noticeably shorter, will grow cold and brief 
in this cycle of the year.