Happy Beltane!

The Beltane Fire has been lit!  The Oak King Lives!  

When I was young, and a solitary practitioner, I never much cared if the music was just right, or if I was getting the tone of things the way they should be.  My rituals were for me,  and I always felt connected through them.  I figured the Gods didn't much care what my words were.  It was all about doing and feeling.

Now, coming back to these rites after so many years, I have these two little girls who want to be a part of everything.  Now I want to get the music right.  I want to say the right words to teach them what it is we're doing, but not use so many that they don't connect.

After a very long day and chaperoning a teenage party at a friends house, I, quite last minute, set up for Beltane.  I explained to the girls what the ritual was about, and began.  The space was cleared, the circle cast, the elements and the directions summoned, the Goddess and God called forth.  We extinguished and re-lit the Bel-fire.  We chanted and danced.

I asked each of the girls to think about what they would like to grow inside of themselves as the wheel of the year turns.  They came up with qualities they'd like to cultivate.  Like kindness and patience.  I said I'd like to learn to be creative with our money and make much grow from little.  I'd like our herb garden to grow so that each can be used both in our kitchen and in our Magic.  We visualized all of those things being put into our Bel-fire candle and bound it.  We ate our consecrated animal crackers, and drank our milk while the girls asked questions about what the Gods might look like, and the wheel of life, death, and rebirth.  Bridget says she never wants to be part of any family other than ours.  

After the circle was released, we let the candle burn out.  The Spell was cast.

I've been surprised by how our little rituals are impacting the girls so much.  At almost every one, Bridget has begun crying happy tears, and the girls seem to connect, whispering over candles and feeling that they're part of something magical.  And maybe that's part of where the magic lies.  That they feel so connected to something beyond themselves as well as to each other.  Suddenly they're willing to work for something bigger, something better.  

For me, sharing these things with them adds a whole new layer to my practice.  I'm grateful for their presence, and their genuine wonder.  It makes me feel part of something bigger, too.