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Litha Ritual 2004
Camping Trip 2004
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Reviewed by:Pam Parker
(Tidewater Pagan Women is a local women�s group founded and run by Linda Reichert with the intention of fostering sisterhood among its members and extending those ideals to the community at large through its outreach programs which include charitable work, classes and events.)
It was hot and humid, a typical late June day when a truck, a van, an SUV and a racy sports car pulled into the campground at �Outdoor World� in Lightfoot, Virginia. The vehicles were laden with tents and pavilions, tarps, a camping kitchen, cases of food, coolers filled with drinks, air mattresses, sleeping bags and all the other paraphernalia needed to make a weekend home out in the woods. We were the advance guard sent out to acquire and secure a suitable site. Even though the �woods� were in a campground and the site had actually been reserved ahead of time, the change in the look of the land from early Spring to Mid-Summer managed to confuse us and our little caravan wound round and round the narrow dirt trails � the blind leading the blind. But it�s good to get the whole tour at the beginning.
Our temporary home was a lovely finger of land, surrounded on three sides by ravines. Several large Mother Goddess trees graced our area and we placed our kitchen and campfire between two of them. We were lucky enough to get our community pavilion and our tents up before the rains came. Actually, the rains were quite refreshing and cooled everything down quite a bit.
We were joined by a rescued baby back bird that had been brought to the campground in the hope he would find himself a new home. Almost as soon as he was out of the car he flew to a nearby small tree and sat there chirping happily as he watched us work. He moved from tree to tree throughout the afternoon and we followed his progress through his new surroundings. As the rains grew heavier, he quickly let us know by his loud screaming that he was cold and wet and in desperate need of rescuing. He was found huddled in a tall tree thoroughly drenched and thoroughly unhappy. He was finally coaxed low enough so that one of our young ladies could reach him. He was rescued, comforted, dried, fed, and christened �Banshee.� He did not venture far from us again. He did like to go around the campsite visiting with all the ladies and was adopted as our mascot.
Most of our members arrived that afternoon and were real troupers having to unload cars and put up tents in the rain that continued to fall for the rest of the day and night. Lynn arrived with her new hatchet looking for an excuse to use it and it did come in handy quite a few times. Debbie, our Fire Goddess, started a campfire for us with wet wood � a fire that only went out once during our stay despite the rains showers that came and went all weekend. Once everyone had their homes in place, we all joined together to prepare and eat a meal. We sat around our beautiful fire and enjoyed our meal as we shared much laughter and conversation.
With everyone fed and happy and rested a bit we headed out for the pool for a dip � ah, campgrounds, don�t you love them? � you can be out in the woods and still have some modern pleasures as well. After our refreshing dip, we returned to our campfire where we drummed and sang and enjoyed each other�s company. The beat of our drums and the lovely voices of our ladies rang out across the campground until we were forced into our tents by monsoon-like rains.
Most stayed dry throughout the rainy night with a few exceptions: Chris had a �Chinese water torture� going on in her tent with a leak right over her head, Rory who was using a pool float as her mattress almost floated out of her tent which was not keeping much of the rain outside, Nikki had to retrieve shoes which had been left outside the tent door from the bottom of the hill the next morning.
Saturday morning we gathered around the fire, some of us rather damp around the edges, to share our rain stories of the night before. Vonn cheered everyone with her pots of fresh brewed coffee. With spirits on the rise, we dressed in broomstick skirts and met for the first of our workshops � belly dancing!
Samantha, our teacher, arrived passing out shimmy belts to go over our skirts. Middle Eastern music filled the air as we stretched and learned basic moves (although some found them NOT so basic � we don�t move like that anymore). We all learned a dance and some of us learned to zagareet. I believe that Chris took some pictures of all this and is holding them for ransom. Throughout the weekend you could hear the sounds of the zagareet all over the campground as we called to each other when apart.
After lunch all headed to the recreation room where some played games, some washed clothes, and others swam in the pool - a nice leisurely break with fun and good times.
Everyone was back in time for the afternoon meditation workshop. Pam lead the group in a guided meditation to meet the Goddess, Sheila Na Gig and in so doing re-experience the birth process. It filled us with calm and peace and a warm loving glow.
Afterwards, we sat around the campfire and sang. Chris had her guitar with her and it was a real treat to hear her sing and play. We all struggled to keep pace with her but our voices were clearly no match for hers. This was a great warm-up for next on the agenda was our chant workshop which was led by Rory. We learned some new chants and sang some old favorites and everyone was able to keep up as Linda had prepared wonderful chant books for us ahead of time.
We continued our singing and drumming and guitar playing as Linda, with the help of others, prepared a marvelous dinner for us. Once dinner was over and all was cleaned up and the rain from which we had to run soon after eating was through, we sat around our campfire and shared stories and thoughts and more songs far into the night. Games were played, drums beat, ghost stories told, in all it was a thoroughly be-witch-ing time!!
Next morning dawned clear and Pam fixed us a breakfast fit for the Goddess. We were so full that most of the morning was spent in quiet conversation and lazy diversions. In the afternoon, Linda introduce us to a wisdom circle. We sat around our altar and swore loyalty and strict confidence in what we were about to share. A topic was chosen and each took their turn speaking frankly and openly and from the heart. It was a most uplifting experience. A chance to share things most of us had kept buried deep within us for years. There was not a dry eye (one of our altar tools was a box of tissues) and everyone was filled with a warm sense of belonging. Twenty individuals from different backgrounds and times all baring their souls for the others to see and doing so with complete trust and faith was a life-changing event. The love and caring shared from each and every one of us to all the others in the group was awe inspiring. I have never experienced anything like it.
Afternoon brought with it the inevitability of our return to our everyday lives. Spouses came to help and everyone pitched in to disassemble our little village. It was disheartening. I know I was not alone in wanting our time to go on longer. The job was accomplished but with heavy hearts that our special time was over. Sustaining us, though, were the wonderful times we had shared - the fun, the laughter, the songs, the food, the love and the tears. We all felt richer for our experiences together and we formed a bond with each other that will stand the tests of time.
The success of our camping trip and indeed of the group as a whole is due to the unfailing efforts of our founder and leader, Linda. Her determination, creativity and dedication to our group and to its purpose and ideals are an inspiration to us all. It is through her efforts that the group has grown and prospered. Her hard work and devotion to the group, its members and all its events have brought together a wonderful group of women who when they work together as a team far exceed the sum of their parts. Our purple hats are off to you, Linda, for helping us to realize what we can be!