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One of the things we are all enjoying about this trip is the chance to see
so many different places, and so much of Mother Nature's beauty. The world
we live in is truly a remarkable place, and this trip reminds us of that
very strongly. As Pagans we feel keenly our commitment to Mother Earth at
all times, but seeing these magnificent places really drives home the
importance of taking care of the Earth so that our children and their
children will still be able to enjoy Her bounty.
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We stopped for the night in Sheridan, Wyoming, and enjoyed a good nights
sleep.
Thursday morning came and we headed out again. This mornings travels took
us through the area of the Little Big Horn, which was very interesting.
Although we didn’t stop at any of the historic sites we definitely felt
the press of history.
We stopped in the town of Livingston, Montana, and had a bit of a setback
-let us simply call it the "Diesel Incident" and say no more about it.
After a couple of hours, some unexpected expenditures, and a great deal of
hysterical laughter I prefer not to discuss, we were back on the road
again, the Diesel Incident put behind us.
We were all overawed by the beauty of Montana. The mountains with their
winding roads were simply breathtaking. As we moved from Montana into
Washington we were struck by the lush green forests which clung, sometimes
precariously to the mountain sides. Even after darkness overtook us, we
could still get an inkling of the beautiful terrain we were passing
through.
It was nearly eleven by the time we reached Moses Lake and Mystic
Moonlight Grove. We had planned to arrive in time to attend the local
"Coffee Cauldron" but after the Diesel Incident this proved more than we
could manage.
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Rev. Nepthys Set of
Mystic Moonlight Grove welcomed us warmly into her home, and made us very
comfortable. She gave us a wonderful meal of excellent home-made spaghetti
and helped us settle in for the night.
Nepthys Set has a wonderful home, which is decorated with her own
paintings -beautiful and distinctive works, many of spiders, others of
metaphysical subjects. I was especially struck by a set of elemental
spiders she had painted.
Right: Some of the members of
Mystic Moonlight Grove pose with us. L to R, (back) Rev. Don, Rev. Jason,
Lacey, Rev. Ruthann in an uncharacteristic but becoming chapeau, (front)
Robin the Weed Witch, Rev. Nepthys Set, and Temple Treasurer Emily |
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In addition to painting spiders, Nepthys Set also raises them, and snakes
as well.
We sat with Nepthys Set and talked for some time about her experiences as
a Shrine, the local community, and our mutual friend Pete Pathfinder of
the Aquarian Tabernacle Church with whom we will be meeting next week. We
were very impressed with Nepthys Set, who seems to combine practicality
and spirituality in a very positive way -just what a Temple Head needs.
Because of the hour we soon had to head for bed, so did not get to talk as
long as we might have liked, but we looked forward to meeting the other
members of Mystic Moonlight Grove in the morning.
One thing we are noticing very strongly in this trip is how much everyone
feels like family -and so indeed we are. It is truly gratifying to meet so
many nice people, and to know that as a Tradition we have such wonderful
members. For this we are very grateful to Witchschool.com whose online
program has allowed the Tradition to expand in this way, and which has
attracted such excellent people.
I must tell you that when we first began Witchschool there were many nay-sayers.
Ed and I heard time and again that it couldn't be done, and from some that
it shouldn't be done. How wrong those people were! The people we have met
through Witchschool are among the nicest and most competent people I know,
and I am very proud of how things have gone.
Well, the hour having grown very late, I must sign off for now. Tomorrow
we will meeting with the Mystic Moonlight Grove members, then heading out
to Salt Water state park for the Spring Mysteries campout. We are really
looking forward to it all.
Many Blessings
Rev. Don
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We awoke this morning in the peaceful home of Rev. Nepthys Set of Mystic
Moonlight Grove. I am struck by the sense of serenity and spirituality
around Nepthys Set, and very impressed by it. I am also struck by her
talents, which we saw more and more examples of as the morning unfolded.
For those who don’t know, Mystic Moonlight Grove was just deemed as a
Temple at the recent Lustration. Being a new Temple we expected them to
have some idea of what they were doing, but also to still be finding their
way. We were rather surprised by how well organized and socially active
they were. Of course we knew about the Coffee Cauldrons, the MMG
newsletter (the Myst-Arcana -copies can be obtained through mysticmoonlightgrove@yahoo.com), and other Temple activities which were
just reviewed in the deeming. But to be here in person and see what all
they are doing was most impressive. And, just as in the Circle of Friends
Shrine, everyone was very nice and seemed very competent.
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Above: Rev. Don, Rev. Nepthys Set,
Felicia, and Annie.
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Nepthys Set had spread out a wonderful breakfast for us including her
home-made zuchini bread, fresh fruit and scrumptious pastry -as well as
some of that famous Washington state coffee. Later in the morning this
would be augmented by home-made root beer -a rare and unusual treat and
simply delicious!
Around nine people began to arrive. Robin, the famous "Weed Witch" of
Moses Lake, arrived first. Robin is a delightful woman, full of
fascinating stories. Soon others arrived: Felicia, Lacey, Anna, and Temple
treasurer Emily.
We discussed all manner of subject, notably the local community and its
needs. Mystic Moonlight Grove is a very active Temple with many irons in
the fire, and a commitment to community building whose chief expressions
include their Coffee Cauldron social gatherings. The are also a fun group,
whose members have a wonderful chemistry between them.
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We really didn’t want to leave, but we had to be in Salt Water state park
by evening, and so by early afternoon we had to say our farewells. But not
before Nepthys Set gave us two bottles of her home-made peach wine: one a
gift to the Mother Temple, the other to be used at the initiation
scheduled for Monday night at Our Lady of the Sacred Earth Witan Shrine.
We also received one other gift from Mystic Moonlight Grove -a new
traveling companion. Nepthys Set has two pet snakes and many pet
tarantula's. One of the latter is now in Rev. Jason's care -a curly haired
tarantula whom Jason has named Keri.
We now set out for the Seattle area. The mountains in Washington state are
glorious, and the so the trip was one of awe for we who had never seen
them before. It was one of our shortest days of driving so far, and it was
just late afternoon when we arrived at Salt water state park.
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We were greeted by Dragon/John, the Chief Priest of Our Lady of the Sacred
Earth Witan Shrine who helped us get settled in. The camp site was very
beautiful, with a wonderful view of Puget Sound. Rev. Jason dutifully
helped set up our tents, and then we set about
exploring.
In addition to John, who is very interested in our budding Order of
Paladins, we soon met Leo -a charming young man who was to enact the part
of Hermes in the Spring Mysteries ritual play which gives the gathering
its name.
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Above: Carmen and Iris.
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Soon Rev. Isarma, Head of the Shrine, arrived. Isarma is friendly,
outgoing, and in constant motion. From the time she arrived until late at
night it seemed she was always busy -as is usually the case with a
festival organizer. With Isarma was her mother Carmen -a fascinating and
dignified lady who oversaw the preparations for the nights feast. It seems
that mother and daughter have been active for many years in the local SCA
community, and have much experience in preparing feasts for large groups
of people, and I can tell you that their cooking is wonderful!
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Above: Carmen, Rev. Isarma's mother,
sitting at the campfire
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We also met Carmen's husband Paul, and Isarma's children: Scott, James,
and the lovely Angela.
As the evening progressed the camp site began to bustle and more and more
people arrived. Glenn and Sharon, who act as Firetenders at the Burning
Man festival arrived. Glenn and I enjoyed comparing taste in Filk music,
and Sharon began busily recruiting people to join her for a game of
something called "Dalmuti". We also met Bill and Kathie, who first
mentioned to us an organization called Pagan Ocean.
Soon Sharon has gotten her game of Dalmuti together and I must say I
watched this game unfold with some fascination. I am not entirely sure of
how it works, but it involves greater and lesser peons, something called
dalmutis, and a great deal of recitation of poetry, spinning, and
curtsying. Most interesting to watch.
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At midnight the festival started in earnest with the beginning of the
mystery play. A candle-lit procession led down a ridge to an open-air
ritual area overlooking the Sound. The play began with the Goddess
Demeter, played by Carmen, addressing herself to the her brother Zeus with
a demand that her daughter's marriage to Hades be annulled. Zeus refused
this, and Demeter and Hermes resolve to end the marriage by destroying the
God of the Dead. This is a very unusual variation on the story of
Persephone and Hades, and was most interesting in its approach. After
being told that the play would continue next day, we returned to camp
where some sat up and drummed and sang and some (a tired me) retired for
the night.
Right: Rev. Iris Isarma Crane
as Persephone in the midnight Mystery Play
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