The musty smell of dirt mixed and teaming with the smells of new green life.

I paid a visit to the outdoor shrine today, cleaning it off and making my usual offerings, there is a new addition of a small spirit house that came at christmas that I am pleased with,and that I have a feeling the spirits are pleased with too~

There is much news on the bee front to report, but I shall have to save that for another blog post, for as usual the bees had many lessons waiting for me this spring…

In the meantime I take up my new post as an initiate in service to the earth with a stone that now sits in a special place in the garden, the stone is a symbol of my commitment to tend and respect the earth as best as I can. This means a fresh start with composting, which has been neglected this past while,  as well as to my garden which has been neglected since our summer trip to Europe where it was pretty much left to it’s own devices and as a result is a wild thing that does not look as pretty as one might expect!

Yes the smells of earth have drawn me outside, and refreshed my inspiration and commitment to the little garden plot of earth over which I have guardianship, for now at least…

The stone sits covered with rain and morning dew, with frost and whatever elements the earth brings that day. When I visit I bring offerings of  small pebbles and rain water and sit for a moment remembering my commitment.

If you should ever fancy to pop by my garden, there is a small gate that will lead you behind the house and into it, where you will see the apple tree that loves to have ribbons tied into her branches, the altar shrine that has an ever moving amount of offerings on her, the medicine wheel garden that always needs tending, and of course the bees, ever humming and dancing about the gardens flowers, and now this beautiful stone which loves to be covered with water….. no offering is ever too small, and…

All are welcome in the garden…

Huichol Shamanic String art.

We have been going there for just over 10 years now, but it was only last year that I decided to have an adventure of my own that did not include the kids or my husband.

My mother in law Azra and I had always wanted to visit one of the Huichol{Pronounced Witch-hol} villages that lies deep up the Sierra Madre mountain range, which is 3,000 feet above sea level, in Nayarit.

Huichol Village. The round building is the temple altar.

For me, this trip felt important because as I have deepened into my shamanic training I have come to appreciate all of the shamanic cultures from around the world, but the Huichol Indians from Mexico captured my attention years ago because of their stunning art and presence in Jalisco. Over the years I have brought back a few special pieces that have captured some of the spirit animals that I too work with, for there seems to be a universal connection to certain animals, regardless of the tradition you come from.

Joined by another friend of Azra’s it was decidedly an all woman day, and we set out at the break of dawn with no expectations, just an open mind and a great sense of adventure. We knew that the trip would take us  about 12 hours and so we packed our backpacks with water, sun lotion and snacks and pesos.

Now don’t get me wrong, I realize that I am making it sound as if we were heading out on our own, and this was not the case, we were going up to a village that had given permission to our guide Don Miguel, a man raised from the time we was a small boy and adopted by the elder chief of the village. There were only a small handful of us, as I guess an 11 hour tour along dusty roads is not the usual things folks want to see and do when they go to Mexico, and this suited us perfectly.

What I appreciated most form this trip was the amount of time Don Miguel spent teaching us the history of the Huichol people, their culture and how to be respectful.

Don Miguel explained that the Huichol people are actually  descendents of the Aztecs, as they migrated from as far away as Alaska and came to settle where they are now. The Huichol people still practice a pre-Columbian shamanic tradition that primarily uses peyote to receive visions forms a big part of their culture and who they are as a people. It has not been easy though because even though they withstood the Spanish Invasion, they are still striving to keep their culture alive.

Peyote

He told us his personal story about how he came to receive permission to take us to the village and made no bones about the fact that we were only allowed in because of his connection to them, and that how we behaved was a direct reflection on him, so we needed to be very respectful.

The drive took us five hours up dusty roads, and through ancient villages and into the jungle. I am not sure how he did I as I owuld have been motion sick, but Don Miguel stood up with his back facing the window and  and gave us extensive history lessons on the Aztecs  and Huicholes  and generally preparing us on how to be respectful and on the protocol for entering their village.

As we came into the base of the dusty village I was struck by the red earth and the bricks that the Huichol people had made with it, as it tends to be very dusty, but makes the landscape very beautiful as well.

Slowly we climbed up the foot worn path, and made our way intot he opening of the village. Here we stopped and bought some grain and sweets from a small building/canteen to bring to the oldest elder women in the village, for it would only be with her permission that would be allowed to come in.

Don Miguel explained this village and it’s people are not poor, it is only our perception of how we think things should be that makes us see them as poor

This is something I have spent a long time thinking about, and it was a revelation to realize that my only frame of reference for what I was seeing was media!

You see this is what media tells us,when they show images of people who live with no running water,or electricity, but often  most of what we see is actually only half the story!

Once we were given permission, we were taken to the very center of the village, where their sat a small altar and the village shaman came to cleanse us before being allowed to walk freely around the village.

Again this made a lot of sense to me, for who wants to invite strangers into your village if they are carrying unwanted energies in with them! Once we were cleansed and smudged we were welcomed into to their temple for a blessing{ no photos allowed!} and then into the village square to look and purchase their art.

Huichol art is truly something to behold as the larger framed pieces are made using beeswax and string and the sculptures and jewelry are done using beeswax and small seed beads. This makes bees very sacred to them, which I loved!

In the collage below are some special pieces I brought back with me. The string art  has two shamans one male and one female. In the top left there is a honey bee, which looks a bit like a moth. The female shaman is making candle offerings and the male is using a stick with feathers attached to it, which is used to smudge/ cleanse.

The piece on my altar is a beaded peyote pot.

The trip was long and we were exhausted when we finally got back home, but I would say very worth it.

I felt that Don Miguel had done a very good job explaining and teaching us about the life and culture of the Huichol, and in a very respectful manner as well, but to be honest I will probably never do a tour like this again, unless I am personally invited.

It is an interesting experience to be in another culture, to want to be respectful and yet because of the severe damage done to most of our indigenous cultures to know that this is just simply not possible.

I was aware that we were welcome into the village because they were doing business, and that most of what was truly dear to them was hidden and kept secret, as it should be. But I am also aware that there were folks on the trip who felt disappointed by the day, those who wanted to see more of the people, who promptly went into their homes when we arrived, ruining their photo opp’s.

This seems to be the nature of visiting as a tourist, but to be honest my feeling is that to be the most respectful person I can be when traveling, is to come and enjoy the landscape of wherever I am, spend my money on the local economy, hang with the locals and try their food, keep an open mind, and then to go quietly home.

You see the last time I was buying beads I found the most amazing honeycomb shaped citrine beads, in fact I was so surprised I could not even believe my eyes, and promptly bought 2 strands, as I have never seen beads shaped like this before!

Then last night after a lovely e-mail from a customer asking about bee necklaces I was inspired to finally pull these beads and a bee pendent that I have been saving out and work with them, this is the final result!

This necklace is now up at the Red Moon Designs Store.

Now onto the giveaway!

As you all probably know another commercial holiday is coming up called Valentines day, and while I don’t usually go all in for the “celebrate because Hallmark tells you to” I am in favor of LOVE!

And so, it is with love in mind of all the supportive folks that have sent me the most generous e-mails and kind words supporting  and loving the work that I do, that I have decided to do another giveaway to give back just a little more with this Rose Quartz necklace.

Rose Quartz being the stone of love, compassion and inner self love.

The rules are super simple, pop on over to my Facebook page and share the photo of this necklace on your personal page!

Each time you share it, your name goes in giving you multiple chances to win.

I will draw a name on February 14th, so have fun and good luck!

There is a stirring deep beneath the ground, a movement so subtle is is hard to notice if it were not for the change in the air, a crisp, and somehow warmer earthy smell that tells the snowdrops to show their heads and birds to sing a different song today.

Today I will pull our our corn dolly and change the altar, there will be offerings to the earth and to the goddess Bridgid, in thanks for bringing us yet again out of the dark season. Candles will be lit and sweet cake baked to celebrate!

Today we remembered that night, January 30th 2007 and how it changed our lives.

Northern Lights

The day she went into labour I was called to be there as a friend, as a doula, as a sister who had held her hand at her first birth, who had wiped her brow, told her she could do it, and saw how beautiful she was.

I remember it as one of the most sad, painful, and achingly beautiful days I have ever experienced.

Today we cried and talked and wondered at what her daughter would have been like, and we remembered how deep and wild and precious life is, and discovered a deep wealth of peace there.

And then her baby boy woke up crying and needed her to tend to him, reminding us that life has a way of moving on, of showing us a love beyond our knowing and although today is one of memories and sadness, there is also a gift that lies at the heart of every tragedy, but it often takes time to see it.

Tonight I sit with a candle, and thank her for all that her short life offered.

For her birth and death changed me, and called me to make a change.

For you see I was not only a friend and doula in witness to both her birth and death, but I was also called to preside over the ministerial ceremony of her funeral day.

Together her parents choose a church that had a labyrinth at it’s center, and we lined it with candles, asking that as the community  choose a stone from a basket at the beginning and to fill it with all the love and blessings they could while they walked the labyrinth leaving it in the center.

That day was truly a celebration of her life and a true reflection of the wider community who loved her and her parents and who wanted to be there, to hold space and to support, it was overwhelming and beautiful and somehow I managed to convey the message they asked me to share without loosing it myself!

They say it takes a community to raise a child, but I can tell you from the depth of my heart that it also takes a community to grieve one too.

After the ceremony strangers came and said how beautiful the ceremony was, and when loved ones said it was like I had been doing it all my life, I realized that life change needed to happen sooner perhaps then I had planned.

Change in inevitable, and life moves on even if we don’t want it to.

Today I also remember the poem I read that day written by Mary Frye. A beautiful poem full of beauty and the reminder that life is Wild and Deep and Precious.

Do Not Stand at my Grave and Weep

Since that time life has indeed moved, and changed. I am a different person today from what I was five years ago, such is the nature of living, and I willingly embrace every part of it, every deep wild, sad and precious part that life has to offer!