Update and Beltane Reflection

No, no, no, I've not abandoned the blog. I'm still working on my PIE book, I've renewed my ADF membership for another year and officially joined Cedarlight (though I won't be a full member for another couple of High Days).

I do want to sit down and rework my schedule for getting the DP done, but I've decided I'm not going to be a slave to the schedule in the Wheel of the Year booklet. Too much temptation for procrastination and falling off the wheel (so to speak). I am going to set down some deadlines for finishing books and doing the essays.

What I need to focus on now is laying out a plan for the longer-term requirements: mental discipline and nature awareness. I have some ideas percolating.

So. Beltane.

I went to Beltane at Cedarlight. It was pretty crowded, as rituals have been  so far. No helicopters, I'm almost sorry to note. In fact, it was a pretty quiet afternoon in the neighborhood.

The ritual team was painted to embody their roles in ritual, including those folks "aspecting" Bel, Danu, and Cernunnos (our Gatekeeper). I put aspecting in quotes because that isn't entirely what the ritual team was attempting to do, but it ended up happening to some degree nonetheless. I almost feel like Bel and Danu, in particular, were so happy to be invited in that they stormed the castle. And Cernunnos isn't particularly known for being a gentle guest (and this is a good time of the year to celebrate a horned God).

Fun moment... when the offering was put out to appease the Outdwellers, a metal bench in the sanctuary collapsed under the two folks sitting on it. While the bench certainly collapsed because it isn't really rated for the weight of a couple of real people sitting on it, the timing was... well, it couldn't have been timed better.

The energies at this ritual were a bit chaotic and untamed. I usually feel pretty peaceful at CLG, but I ended up sitting outside in the sanctuary prior to ritual because I needed some quiet time to ground away from the teeming hordes of people. I was pretty successful.

I enjoyed the drumming because I was able to take part in it. We had a good set of drummers so I didn't feel like I was trying to fight people who can't keep a beat, as usually happens in large ritual. The energy in ritual wasn't as high as I've felt before, but I think that was a combination of a lot of new folks/guests plus a chief liturgist running her first ritual plus a very dynamic invocation of the Deities of the Occasion that peaked out the energy early.

For someone who's not been in ritual space when another person has aspected or channeled a deity, it can be overwhelming, uncomfortable, and/or frightening. I totally understand that, because that's how I felt the first time it really happened for me. It's like that first time you feel a gale-force wind, have the lightning crash down a little too close, or feel an ocean wave take control over your direction. And considering who we were calling in, two of those metaphors are pretty appropriate.

I highly enjoyed the ritual, myself. I've seen a lot of sacred theater that didn't work for one reason or another, but this did. I'm sorry that it seems like many of the other participants didn't feel this way. I also seemed to anticipate the weather well enough, but I should have worn real shoes instead of flip-flops. Once the sun set and the damp started to come down, my toes got COLD!