Archive for Wise Woman/Crone
Four Days of Ceremony
Posted by: | CommentsPicture this: a New Moon gathering, the Turtle Moon, falling in the middle of a week of ceremony (October 24th through 28th) and 40 women having a ‘slumber party’ in the woods! The Second Annual Grandmothers Summit assembled at Camp Whittier, north of Santa Barbara, CA this year. In the midst of a beautiful oak woods with little cabins nestled in groups, we gathered to celebrate womanhood, Mother Earth, opening to the future, and the wisdom of our Ancestors. Flocks of wild turkeys gobbled for acorns, herds of Mule deer grazed on the only grass around – the playing field – and a huge hawks nest graced the oak tree in front of the lodge. For four days and four nights we gathered in gratitude and joy – in the main lodge, at the fire circle, and in the dining hall – renewing our sisterhood with sacred intent.
The Sacred circle was opened Monday night with a talking circle. We passed the talking feathers and everyone was deeply heard – a gift beyond measure is to be truly listened to by 39 others. It was only the beginning of the depth that was experienced during this “time out of time” of sacred sisterhood with the Sisters of Honua. www.yraceburu.org/Grandmothers_Summit.html
Each day, for the next three days, we had presenters of wisdom and sacred knowledge from a diverse background of experiences and learning to ground us in what is our truth here on Mother Earth. We learned how to ground deeply in the Earth, create flexible boundaries, and become invisible in various ways. We walked the path to our own Peace with a deep meditation following the story of the “Peacemaker” Deganawida, who joined the warring tribes of the Iroquois into the peaceful Iroquois Nation long before the Europeans arrived.
A beautiful Tarahumara Curandera reminded us about the knowledge we can gain from sacred plants, the Moon Dance, and the use of prayer and blessing before, during, and after every act in life. Healing from the Gypsy (Rom) tradition was taught through Vas Pesh, Hand Walking, showing us that all the systems of the body can be addressed and healed using specific pressure points on the hands! Next came a fascinating session of Tibetan Astrology, coupled with a system of Numerology that gave us positive attributes from our first name and the shadow side of our nature from our last name. What a marvelous personal clearing this created for each of us by speaking these out loud.
We continued filling ourselves with sacredness and wisdom through stories of healing and spiritual gifts from those who have gone before, and connecting ourselves to All That Is through another deep meditation. A master drum maker and powerful Native singer gave us drumming and song that expanded our senses and filled our hearts; then a creative sacred art project that showed us all unfolding in a strong, playful, unified community also brought us into alignment with our beautiful child within. Blended into these teachings were Fire ceremony, New Moon Women’s Initiation ceremony, an exciting market place with products from our facilitators, and many other blessings from our sisters of Spirit.
For every woman who attended this gathering, there were hundreds of her Ancestors that joined us in ceremony. We made a ripple in the fabric of the Universe, and it is filled with love, joy, peace, and our Dream Seeds! There is now an open connection to us from all the strong, powerful, wise women who have gone before. Stop a moment, plant your feet, connect to Mother Earth, and draw on the wisdom of the Fourth World as we pass through the gate into the Fifth World. Let us remember to leave behind everything that no longer serves us, and be open to the newness of all creation. Ah ho!
[Pictures to come!]
Adding My Voice In
Posted by: | CommentsThere have been many conversations with friends about the ‘state of the Union’ lately. That’s the good news! At least the disparity of the situation between the 1% and the 99% has become so evident, we now get it. Or do we? I wonder if the whole truth and depth of this attempt to overturn the form of Democracy our country was founded on is really sinking in?
Whatever do I mean? What does this refer too? Well, our food contains poisons that are compromising our health, and damaging our children. Babies are now born with up to 200 chemicals in their bodies at last count. The various state and federal governmental bodies are in the grip of international companies, international financial institutions, and large organizations with even larger self interests. None of these are human, so there is no ethical code, integrity, honor, or morals involved in their point of view or their dealings with all of us. We have become chaff in the wind and whatever money we have is the only thing left in the basket when the harvest is done. We, as people, have been blown away in the winds of very Big Business doing the one thing they are geared to do: make profits above all else.
We’re in BIG TROUBLE, Folks! And it’s going to take a large turnout of ordinary citizens to get this wagon turned around. We can do this, and have to do it now – if we value the high principles this nation was founded on. That means we have to show up!
Showing up comes in many forms, so don’t think you have to join rallies, occupy Wall Street, or sleep in a tent to make a difference. Those things all help and it is a huge part of showing up. Spending some time on your closest capitol steps with others will show up as a signal of how fed-up we are with being stripped of power. There are many other ways to get this idea across and actively join the 99%. So I’ll talk about a few.
Stop consuming goods from ALL the big box stores. Trade with each other, barter, find things on FreeCycle and Craigs List. For the Holidays, ReGift to all the people on your gift lists. Think of recycling, repurposing, and renewing as political and critical acts to alert the Big Companies that we mean it when we say we are fed-up with being treated like ciphers, sheep, and cannon fodder. Allow the GNP to take a dump this year!
Start connecting with others to establish a local economy (Denver Dollars for instance), local food, and learn what you can eat that you never considered as a source of food. There is wild food in the city, you know. Relearn what Grand parents and Great-Grandparents always knew and did. We have the skills, we have the talents, and we also have the teachers. Don’t let the rhetoric of the Big Company Journalists affect or effect you! We have people who know what to do. Seek them out and become an interdependent force to be reckoned with!
That’s how we started and those sweet juices of community and cohesion are still running through our veins. We know what we need to do. So just start…start acting out of honor and morality…start joining rallies…start unplugging from the Machine!! Just tell ’em: “Grandmother Said So!”
Grandmothers Wake Up Call!
Posted by: | CommentsAs everything ‘heats’ up in a world preparing for change, I have had some deep questions about my own role in this. There are many ways I could help, or teach, or present others with options for a healthy future. As various ideas arose in me, I would explore them in my heart and mind to see which ones really caught fire. Some were close to that ignition point – just not quite there yet.
Recently I took a road trip to New Mexico to visit three different sets of friends. First I connected with a dear girlfriend from my childhood in Santa Fe. Much to my surprise and delight we were more natural and at ease than ever before. Even though more than forty years had passed, we had a very ‘in the moment’ relationship together. Yet, to me, it was also rooted in our childhood, in the Earth, at my roots. This stirred me deeply as the love and the warmth between us was so very real.
This warmth and love has happened with other best girlfriends from childhood, and it has re-grounded me to a past that is suddenly alive and well in the present! This is a sea change for me, and adds a depth to my presence I didn’t know I was missing! This has connected me back to the Farm, the Earth, and childhood in a positive, nourishing way.
Next I went to hang out in the loving presence of three Sisters Of Honua, my beloved Spirit sisters. We Sisters of the Earth are connecting, communing, and supporting one another for the sake of our Mother Earth and all my relations. Here, after the drumming, during the night, a fire started burning in me, a fire I had no words for yet.
Two hours North, I stopped and parked on the other side of a juniper, on the other side of a ranch gate, and waited for my friend to come get me. She arrived before I got the gate pulled closed over the rough, rutted ground. [There is no way for my low-slung ride to navigate the road to her home.]
Finally, after much bumping and twisting around on dusty roads, we could look down into a small valley and see the donkeys, a horse, the river, and the beautiful buildings she and her husband call home on the range! A year ago I built a labyrinth for her on this land and I knew we were going to walk it again in the moonlight as it was to be a full moon that night.
While waiting for the moon to rise, my friend pulled out an album and a DVD . Her sister had put together the story of part of the Suffragette Movement, the part their Grandmother played in giving Women the vote. We immersed ourselves in that story, really experiencing what our Grandmothers did, what they endured, and what it was all for. It was truly inspiring! I wanted to join them, to stand on their shoulders and make a difference in my world.
There it was! The fire in the belly had words, and it went like this. One of the wisest advisers President Obama lost was his Grandmother! He has missed and still needs that counsel of wisdom in Washington. Now all the Grandmothers need to speak to him and to all leaders everywhere! We have something to say that needs to be heard!
The time has come to speak our truth: about the food, about the water, about the seeds and the lands and about the children and grandchildren of our lands. We Grandmothers, and supporters of the Grandmothers, and supporters of Mother Earth need to SHOW UP in force. We need to BE WILLING to stop the madness. We need to TELL THE TRUTH from our hearts. We need to say to all the powers that be: “I will only accept the best from you!”
If not now, Women, then when? For if we cannot speak out now to stop the poisons, stop the killing, and start healing ourselves and our home there will be no tomorrow to do it in. This is the Grandmothers Wake Up Call! This is the right time for peaceful action. We have our Grandmothers shoulders to stand on. This is when we shine in all our power, so that there is an Earth to pass down to the next seven generations, and humans to live on it. This is why we are here at this moment on this Earth, our home!
I propose we meet in all the capitols of all the lands on Earth Day, April 22, 2012. I see us walking, riding, pedaling, flying, and car pooling to our capitols. I see us pushing baby carriages, pushing each other in wheel chairs, riding on floats, dancing great daisy chains, and singing our way to the capitols. Let us make a huge noise for life, joining together heart to heart in community to get this house cleaning done once and for all.
Roll up your sleeves, Ladies! It’s time to have some serious fun! And don’t forget to ask all those wonderful men in our lives along for protectors. The more the merrier!
