Mabon 2024
The September sun shone bright and warm for our Mabon gathering.
It was the 3rd year that we have met alongside the banks of the Provo River in the shadows of the great mountains that have watched over that river valley for centuries.
We started our gathering with a song to honor the continuous changes and cycles of the seasons and we prepared for our discussion on the European witch hunts with the story of The White Hare of Dorset.
Those who attended our gathering had prepared in various ways to discuss the witch hunts and our circle was filled with vulnerable experiences shared, examples of the ways that the witch hunts still harm us today and compassion for ourselves as we seek ways to move forward into a future we can help build, with greater knowledge of current harms that took root in the past.
After our discussion, we sought out the cold waters of river for some of us to swim in, some of us to dip our legs in and for those feeling extra bold, to jump into.
Our meal was a nourishing and indulgent mix of salads, breads and delicious desserts, all provided by the community to be shared and enjoyed together.
We worked with the folk song, The Besom Maker, as we stripped our besoms from last year and made new ones for the year ahead. Our culminating ritual of Mabon is the honoring of the last year of our lives and what our besoms have witnessed from the Autumn Equinox last year to the one we now greet this year.
It is always an honor to work with difficult conversations during the balance points of the year provided by the equinoxes and we are incredibly grateful for everyone who attended and came with open hearts, minds and so much compassion. The space of love that was held for each other and all the tens of thousands of people who died during the European witch hunts was tangible and not soon forgotten.
