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A Ritual of Ease for Midsummer
My circle met at my home yesterday. I’ve been circling with the same group for 27 years as of this upcoming Hallows (Samhain). We started as a group of six, and over time have expanded to ten, but all the original members are still here. It’s pretty remarkable. Dark Sun circle is my family. I don’t have blood family any more, so they are it when it comes to celebration of holidays, sharing of confidences, shared grief and celebration. We’ve been through marriages and divorces, all sorts of life changes. Thankfully, no deaths, yet. So it was wonderful to see them. We’re kind of far-flung, so we only get together…
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A Dawn Prayer
Whose warm love flows across the land each day Stirring Life, the world’s magic, arms yearning up, Turning each green leaf to follow. Whose generous balm Upon the skin is love’s touch, ahhhhhh heated fingers soothing, Whose roar boils water from ocean to sky Drawing sweet from salt, becoming rain, snow, river, lake; Whose fervid beat upon us is deadly, and yet Contemplating cold stars how we miss it, the Golden One, quotidian center Of our days, steady companion, sower of treasures great and small: Light-bringer, Life-quickener, dazzling, unbearably bright, Hail, oh hail the magnificent Sun!
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Hail, the Magnificent Sun!
These are the kindest and best of days. The evenings grow long, the air is mild. Here where I live, anyway, life is good. For our ancestors, too, these were good days. Planting and early tending of crops were over. Early lambs and hunting of spring animals were abundant. After the long, anxious wait of winter, this was a time to enjoy life. The energy of Midsummer night is a long-understood atmosphere in Western culture. It means air warm enough for all-night goings-on outdoors. It means woods and meadows and moon-dappled hilltops. Nights for mystical and amorous adventures! Wherever you live, I suspect you know what I mean. The long, lovely…
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Midsummer: The Sabbath of Ease
We’re now in the long, golden days of the Northern Hemisphere summer, approaching the very longest day: Midsummer. Historically, for those of us whose forebears are European, this was the time of year when grain crops were in the fields and not yet ready to harvest, but fruits and early vegetables were plentiful along with milk and meat. Though our ancestors lived lives of hard toil, this time of year was easier than any other: long, warm days with not that much to do but gather the day’s food and tend to the animals. So what do humans do when they have time available? They play, and they create art and…
