Dear Friends, here’s the story of our wonderful ceremony.
4 weeks ago . . . and don’t miss the photo-collage at the end. J
~
Sometimes the quiet of a cold, cloudy day can lead us slowly
to deeper place than often reached in bright warm sunshine.
It was a cloudy day when we drove up the mountain, through
walls of snow higher than any we had seen in six years of
ceremonies.
This meant that Albert, Larry, Summer and Teya had farther to
carry the chairs that they had brought up from Bellview Grange
to set up in a circle on the snow. Just as they were finishing, a
large white crystal sound healing bowl filled with water came
to grace the center, as it had last year, brought by Amari Gold
and Suzanne Mathis McQueen.
As Rico was setting up Talia's sound system, plugging in to a
long yellow cord snaked out from the shop by the ski area's
Rick Saul, people were gathering around the circle, talking
and finding places to sit amidst the silence of the quiet slopes,
our voices becoming softer as we felt the peaceful welcome
of the mountain.
Fewer people came this year than on last year’s sunny day,
so at someone’s suggestion, we all moved our chairs a bit
closer to the center. As an introduction to the ceremony,
Suzanne stepped forward and told us about the water in the
crystal bowl, how it would soak up the blessings of our prayers
during the ceremony, and how at the end we could dip our
fingers in, bless ourselves with this water, and then sprinkle
the water out on to the snow, connecting with a blanket of
blessings reaching all around the mountain. Today, 4 weeks
later in the warm sun of springtime, these blessings are now
moving with the melting snow, flowing downhill, into the
creeks, into the rivers, into the ocean, rising and falling again
as rain or snow, carrying our blessings to all beings.
I thanked Suzanne, and then told everyone that there would be
no further announcements or introductions, that these would be
the last words they would hear that were not prayers, as we
entered into the special place of ceremony.
To begin, Devon Strong stepped forward with his hand drum,
bringing in the Four Directions with a traditional Lakota song,
and followed with the Grandmother Song.
The powerful feelings of the original caretakers of this land
continued to set the foundation of the ceremony, with songs
by Mario Gonzales (Paiute/Monache) and Jack Falls-Rock
(Pitt River).
Beginning the Invocation, I called out, giving thanks to the
Spirits of the Mountain in the rising ♫, sustained, or falling
tones of the Takelma language,
Beautiful sun, du-u bay-ay . . .
…………..Beautiful mountain, du-u sohm . . .
……………………………Beautiful snow, du-u pah-ahs
Oh Mount Ashland, Ahl-ke-tah, Cloud Catcher,
………….Snow Holder, Water Bringer
After giving thanks for all of the Mountain's blessings, I
closed with these words, "And we pray that we may bless
*you* today".
… which is what it sure felt like when Alice Di Micele stepped
up to the mike with her guitar and belted out one of her
favorites, a song that many of us could sing along with on the
chorus: “Made out of Water”
Oh-oh, I’m made out of water
Water is the only thing that can quench my thirst
I’m always trying to get back to the water
From that very first breath on my day of birth.
(video, lyrics).
The water blessing continued when Windsong and Kat del Rio
came forward and Alice joined in, beginning with Kat’s song,
Flowing from the Mountains, and continuing with Windsong’s
Ode to Water,
Standing in the water, water washing me clean,
Healing sparkling water rushing over me.
Krsna Deva (Bhakti Yoga, Vaishnava) offered prayers in
English and Sanskrit for the waters and the Earth, holding in
his hands water gathered by his mother, Prema Mayi, from the
Jamuna, one of India's most sacred rivers. His daughter
Satya was with him, ready to help out.
After the prayers, Krsna read this poem:
Bless the water of this mountain
bless the water of this Earth
bless her children, who take the water into their heart.
We thirst for the sweet nectar of truth and love
it falls from the sky in rich abundance
finds you loving it with your porous skin
I pour every drop of my resplendent love into the absorbent cells of these waters
may we be infused with the power of the cosmic ocean
drink love in the form of sweet water
walk this world as a reservoir of love
Coach Louise Rouse (Women of the Rivers), sang a beautiful
prayer/song, and she brought water blessed from ceremonies
of the International Council of 13 Indigenous Grandmothers to
pour into the crystal bowl of water at the center of our circle.
Dana Mari sang a Water Song as Graell and Tony Corsini of the
Goddess Temple of Ashland shared a Ceremonial Anointing
Dance, holding a Chalice filled with Sacred Waters from the Red
& White Spring of Glastonbury England, the Sacramento River
headwaters on Mt. Shasta, the WellSprings of Ashland, and the
Snow of Mt. Ashland.
Talia Rose shared two prayer/songs with us, accompanying
herself on guitar, and then on her tall and beautifully carved
Celtic harp.
The afternoon had become very still, peaceful, and cold as the
deep prayers wrapped us closer to the mountain -- the sense of
us few humans being in the presence of powerful forces who
welcomed us.
As the ten members of the Rogue Valley Peace Choir Ensemble
rose from their chairs and stepped forward to sing, the wind slowly
increased and the snow flurries began, swooping down from the
clouds almost horizontally across the open slope of the ceremony.
We looked at each other and wordlessly moved closer, arms around
each other, huddled together around the rising voices of the choir.
Standing in front of the group, Rob Lowry led them in two rousing
songs. The complicated back-and-forth of the voices warmed us
up (bass, tenor, alto, soprano), rocking with the music.
Draw up, draw up the water, draw up the water from the well
Oh sister, draw up the water, draw up the water from the well
~
On and on the rain will fall
like tears from a star,
like tears from a star.
On and on the rain will say
how fragile we are,
how fragile we are.
As the words of this song trailed off and we were standing there
together amidst the blowing snow, soft clear words with the lilting
tone of Hebrew rose up among us, as Beth Brown began to sing,
slowly and beautifully, the traditional song “Eli, Eli”. When the
English words came in the second verse, it was as if these words
were already in our hearts:
May these things never end …
The sand, and the sea,
The rush of the waters,
The crash of the heavens,
The prayer of the heart.
As we were feeling deeply the last words of the song, with an
extra swirl of snow from the heavens, Don Diego’s mandolin
kicked in, calling forth to active expression the joy that lay
deep within Beth’s song – Somos Unos! We are One! A
medley of Rainbow Family songs followed, and then, still
singing and playing the mandolin, Diego led us in a friendship
dance around the circle, moving to his right and doubling the
circle on itself, greeting each person as they joined in the flow
of energy that wrapped tighter and tighter around the water bowl.
Stopping, standing there with arms around each other, looking
down into the water, still singing, then one by one reaching down
to the water like Suzanne had told us to do, blessing ourselves,
crying, laughing, blessing each other, reaching down to sprinkle
blessed water on the snow, spreading the blessings that we
could feel rippling out now, all around the mountain, flowing with
the blowing snow.
Stepping back, we looked around, at each other, at the Mountain
and the snow … and then someone called out “Potluck” “Where?”
“Pioneer Hall!” “Where?” “Log Cabin by Lithia Park.” “OK”
“Everyone grab a chair.” “Grab two chairs!” “OK!!” and off we
went, picking up everything in record time, leaning into the wind
with chairs for ballast.
Driving down the mountain through tall walls of snow, warming
up, we were greeted by sunshine through the clouds at Lithia
Park, and we could hear the water from the mountain rushing
joyfully down the creek.
When Van and Kathleen first got to the potluck at Pioneer Hall,
they saw that nothing they needed to set things up was there.
Then it was like the story of loaves and fishes, until finally there
were plates and dishes, and more food than we all could eat,
and even more lively conversation. In fact, it seemed like no
one wanted to leave. We all had something special to share,
including Aaron Haslam, who had been inspired to complete
the ceremony by climbing up to the top of the mountain,
carrying our prayers.
Standing around outside, after we had cleaned up and finally
closed the building, little groups of people kept on talking,
munching on Windsong’s corn bread. Eventually, I got to tell
one more story and tears came to our eyes. “What was it that
Beth sang on the Mountain?” “May these things never end.”
Many thanks and much love to all,
Bobcat
May 15, 2012
