By Lady Saoirse
Bright Blessings,
I write this on Beltane Eve, and my online memories have been showing me photos from years past. For many years, we used to gather at Beltane. We would rent a group campsite or Metro Park shelter and be there from the time the park opened until it closed. We had rituals, potlucks, talks, and for some years we camped.
Several years back, my health changed. I have been unable to do the all-day gatherings for a while. Other groups in town do Sabbat, and if I wasn’t hosting a small gathering at home, folks would visit the other groups for the High Day. Seeing all the memories reminds me of something very important- keep your loved ones close while you have them. A day will come when they are gone.
Some of the people who attended every single year have crossed the veil, including my Priest. One individual succumbed to COVID and his absence has left a hole in our hearts. One is wandering the streets, addicted to drugs and won’t let anybody help him. Another is not doing well and barely gets out. One just had a procedure that cracked her spinal column, and her husband died a little over a year ago. Several have moved out of town. Three have done prison ministry. One is dealing with depression. One transitioned and is now a parent. One man is happily divorced from one of the other attendees and he is now a wonderful father, about to get remarried. Another is getting ready to move home with family. Two are even raising nieces and nephews their siblings can’t.
Most of us don’t look like we used to. Many have different jobs and residences. Many of us saw one another multiple times a week, but don’t anymore. All of us are different people than we used to be because life has changed us- but our energy is still bound together with the magic we put in the Maypole multiple times- and that very Maypole is in my closet beside my altar. We are not the same, our lives are not the same, but our magic is still powerful. The memories of our love and good times are still strong.
Why is Beltane the one I always put so much into? Because of what it symbolized in pre-Christian times. It was the beginning of the summer season for people who had two seasons- winter when nothing grew which began at Samhain- then Summer, which began at Beltane, when the growing season commenced. Beltane was also the time to bring the animals from the winter quarters into the sunshine of the grazing fields. Bonfires cleansed away any bad energy and malevolent spirits left over from winter. I have actually seen videos of livestock farms releasing the animals to the grazing fields in warm times and the animals leaped with joy.
I read somewhere that Beltane gatherings in ancient times brought people together who had not seen one another over the winter. That holds true today also. So, for me, Beltane was a time to gather my soul kin in. At our larger gatherings, we caught up, feasted, did magic, and left with our hearts full. When we left a campsite or park space after a Beltane gathering, we left with plans for the next year’s gathering.
In some ways today, my heart is heavy, because so many of my magical kin have crossed the veil. But they have joined the beloved ancestors and will always be loved and respected.
What comes next when life changes you and your soul kin so much you don’t have the ability to gather anymore? Events. But love never changes. When you weave magic together, a part of your souls intertwines. It’s not like just going to church. Actively making magic together joins you. That is exactly the reason why some people refuse to make magic with anybody but their own close-knit group.
For some of us, we share our magic most with soul kin, but we share magic with others. Some we meet once in passing, some we hold close for a while, only to see them leave and we mourn their absence, and others, we are fortunate enough to Circle with often. Just never take for granted the good folk you are lucky enough to Circle with. Someday, you might not be together anymore. You will be blessed with good times, and these will become nothing more than memories.
My priest always told me “The Wicca” meant “The People”. For me this has held true. Without one another, we would have no Circle. Ever. May those you work your magic with be in your life for a long time. May your hearts be close, and your days together be long. May the empty places in your hearts once they are gone be filled with their everlasting love and memories.
Hail the Folk.
Blessed Be.
Lady Saoirse has studied magic and lore for most of her life but started walking her own magical path after being spiritually reborn in the desert. Today, she is a High Priestess for The Temple of the Goddess. She is a psychic advisor and spiritual counselor, a member of the spiritual family at the Magical Druid in Ohio, and she shares her gifts as a Psychic and Content Writer for Spiritual Blossom. She writes for PaganPages.Org emag and has written for Mysticsense.