Summer Solstice!!!

I have a great many things to write about over the past half a week but most important to mention is the focus on tremendous nature immersion and awareness. I've been enjoying daily nature walks when I have the ability to do them and last Wednesday I went to the Lone Fir cemetery for several hours and tried to connect with the ancestors. I have always found a sense of calm and peacefulness in cemeteries even as a small child. I have never feared them but instead approached each grave marker with a sense of wonderment about the amazing person who was buried beneath it. Cemeteries have always been full of a sort of story telling magic to me. Even if I do not visually see ghosts or anything I always imagine the various types of people walking around the cemetery as they would when they were alive, each one dressed differently, speaking different languages, playing, reading, chatting with a friend, etc. Cemeteries have always felt a bit like people watching in a big city to me. There are some images that strike alarm in me and although I might be curious I approach them with caution and others who's joy make me quite literally burst out laughing and grin from ear to ear. Cemeteries tell stories to me, and even I don't have the details, I can FEEL the depth of the lives once lived deep within the ground. However, even though I can feel alive with human story telling energy, I also have a sense of calm. That this is a place of rest. This is the end of one life's journey and a place where emotions can be amplified. This sense of calm is closely tied with my deep respect for the cemetery and the people who's grieving families visit. 

While I walked through the cemetery and took in a great many types of feelings and emotions I began to open my mind to the nature around me as well. There were amazing sweet smells all around and I realized that many of the trees, (Huge, OLD trees) had blooming flowers around. I noticed a terrifyingly small amount of honey bees moving from these flowers and mourned the fact that there should be so many more than there were. I began to notice the tremendous variety of trees providing canopy over the cemetery and felt a pain in my chest that I could not identify a good deal of them. I decided to start looking up trees while I was there and of the many many varieties of trees I confidently identified a Weeping Birch, a Willow Tree, several varieties of Maple trees, Chestnut trees, varieties of Cedar Trees (including a truly beautiful Himalayan Cedar) varieties of Oak trees, and a gorgeous blooming Magnolia tree in which I watched a butterfly fly from giant white flower to flower for a good 10 minutes. 
I watched squirrels run across grave markers and up tree trunks, I watched numerous birds peck at the ground and fly up or away from the tree tops. The peaceful cemetery that was bursting with human personality to me was also radiantly full of natural life as well. I could have stayed for hours more if the sun was not beginning to set and I was not dressed for colder weather. 

In addition to my cemetery trip, I have been trying to be more aware of the nature around me. Leaving window blinds open so that the natural sunlight will wake me, leaving windows cracked so that I can hear the morning bird's songs. (I identified 5 unique bird calls the other morning and although I did not from which species of bird they came, it was still a beautiful thing to count and appreciate so many different voices)

As I have been out of school I have had the free time to spend reading more, hooray! This past week I devoured the book "The Druidry Handbook" by Philip Carr-Gomm. Now I know this is not an ADF book, and in many ways it conflicts with ADF ideas greatly BUT I find it important for myself to understand other types of Neo-Druidry so that I can make comparisons and consider the contrasts critically on my own. I haven't decided if I will do a formal book review on this title or not (Not for Dedicant work) but we shall see. There was a lot of useful information on meditation technique and I loved their approach to the "Earth Path" and how to live a modern life a bit more naturally. I also benefited from reading their history of the Druid Revivalist movement from an academic standpoint. Certainly NOT a bad book, but there was a lot of info that I did not relate too or feel was all that valuable to me. I understand now why ADF would discourage new dedicants from picking up this title first without understanding Our Druidry but I also think that this book did a great job of admitting when some information was questionable, complete fabrication or disproven years later. There was never a feeling that honesty was being withheld but instead highlighting what sort of message we can take from the Druid Revivalist movement instead of dismissing it altogether. 

I also had the pleasure of being able to spend Summer Solstice with our Arch Druid Kirk Thomas at his Trout Lake Druid Sanctuary. I will write more about this experience in detail in my Dedicant assignment but as always it was a truly magnificent experience. We offered to Taranis to bring the rains to end our terrible drought and to petition him to keep his lightning to a minimum. I walked around the Celtic Stone Labyrinth, felt the majesty of Mt Adams, and let the most beautiful sunset during our Rite reach deep within me and pull out all of the sunny fire that Midsummer brings. We burnt a wicker man and within him were our thoughts and fears as well as our hopes. What we wanted to let go of and let into our lives. It was a powerful moment when the wicker man burned. I could literally feel everyone around me let out a sigh of release and take in deep breaths of hope. It is always a whole new experience at the Druid Sanctuary among the stones and our Arch Druid Kirk is a truly amazing person who carries with him a spectacular and unique energy. His wisdom intimidates me as a dedicant only partially through her path but his personality is so inviting that I never feel uncomfortable talking to him. 

It's been an amazing Summer Solstice, I got to experience two rituals (With Columbia PG and at the Druid Sanctuary), I spent lots of time in the sunshine and immersing myself in nature, and fed my inner scholar by reading tons as well. It feels good to be able to devote so much time to my spirituality right now. Happy Summer Solstice! 

The members and friends of Columbia Protogrove who were able to attend the Summer Solstice ritual at Trout Lake Abby Druid Sanctuary.

I was very inspired to create a Summer Solstice gown for this ritual. This entire gown, belt included was created sewn and created by me within 12 hours. <3 Doing artistic projects like this really help me express my inspiration and devotion to the High Days. I was sewing like a madwoman while lighting midsummer incense and listening to music I felt was fitting to Summer Solstice. I chose the colors of the sunshine for obvious reasons! :) That belt was constructed from a pillowcase pattern and was my source of Solstice inspiration. :)