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...and we danced, prayed, and played..finding joy


jillian and me upon our arrival and the Red Marine Trance Dance Festival....

Trance dancing is good for us!!!
Jillian and I left on Friday afternoon...turned off of the main highway to Lake County in Northern California onto a dirt road that would take us the the Red Marine Festival...we were probably a little silly, but jillian put the top down on her convertible...not realizing how many people would want to go faster and dust us on the way past...It was a beautiful drive through a huge, huge, cattle ranch...over funky little bridges, through steams...we were on the little dirt road for almost an hour..


jilly, first hooping of the day...see how it just floats around her...she has so much fun..I love it and her!!

I must admit my first response was not one of overwhelming joy at the location...lot's of dry land...a lake with long dead trees surfacing fomr the shallow water...the stage areas in the dirt and 10 or so oak trees that were the only natural shade for 1000 campers..

Some of the available space if you weren't lucky enough to arrive early and get a sacred tree...
We pulled in and were greeted by the Russians...the Russian army...they took our money and directed us to parking...far from shade trees...We didn't mess around...the rush was on...lot's of people coming in at the same time were were...our camp site was important to me...I had been warned about the blasting loud music...actually been told to be a 15 minute walk away...but that meant no shade...shade vs. loud music Shade won out, and we were blessed with a space under a mid sized gnarled old sacred oak tree...
only a minutes walk from the main stage..eck....the music was close
by time we got our tent up and our beds made it was dark...
really dark...
the only lighting came from the two stages...
the nights music was Russian trance and the voices around us were Russian and Eastern European with some Turkish thrown in.
it was like being dropped into a foreign land as we went out to get the lay of the land....
we decided to call it a night around midnite so we would be fresh for the day...
We got ready for bed, ate a little fruit, hummus and chips...talked til around 1:30AM and then lights out..
My first test...would I be able to sleep
...our tent was actually vibrating...boom, boom, boom of the constant base...fast or slow, it is always there underlying everything else ....the music never stops...24 hours...two stages..one close but I could also hear the other fainter music coming from the 2nd stage....
the earplugs my Bear provided for the trip muffled it some...
I decided to focus and the fainter beat...closed my eyes and didn't open them until 9:30 in the morning...
I SLEPT!!!
longer than I ever do at home...and the music was still playing...
English speaking dj's now...



...still hooping




Francesca, the little gypsy woman...
of course I took a lot of pictures of my little hoop artist...she can dance with that hoop...sometimes it seems to be spinning around her like some sort of mystic ring around a shining star....at one point she had the circle almost to herself...photo opp for mom. I also took a few photos of this beautiful gypsy girl from another land who had been dancing with and watching jillian...she eventually came to me for a hug...and as soon as I took her into my arms she began to cry..(that happens to me a lot)... I held her for quite awhile as she cried... when I let her go she was smiling....and making clear eye contact... she told me she is from the Earth...how the Earth is part of her ...we talked a little about the mess we humans are making of our home ...then she took my hand and asked that I pray with her... we moved a little out of the dance area.....and with loads of people milling about....she got down on her knees in the dirt... she was so earnest and true I couldn't resist...so I got down in the dirt with her...facing each other, knees to knees, holding hands...she asked me to speak, saying I was a goddess, oh my..... we shut out the sound of people and music... heads bowed. we asked that people wake up and take responsibility for Mother who has birthed us all, giving us a home with abundant gifts...enough for everyone..We prayed that all manner of miracles come into play to heal Her.. .it was an amazing moment.. .one I will always remember.. when we where done praying I got up..Francesca brushed the dust from my pants...and cuffed them? Do all young women think we older ones need a little fashion help..lol....then she got up, took my hand and we went into the circle to dance... lovely, lovely feeling to connect with the little free spirited gypsy girl..

heart connection

...creative camping

I also met a young man who thought it was so cool I would bring my daughter to a trance festival...he said it made him happy that I brought mother energy to the event...made him feel it was ok to be there...like a mom seal of approval...
I've been in touch with him since coming home..I like that...
another connection in this often disconnected world.


...a new magical, mystical, friend...says I'm hardcore because, 'I danced with crazy people in a field, under the blazing sun to blasting music"...Hardcore...who knew?

joy


...the magic bus
I have to share some amazement on my part...I did not hear a single swear word or see any kind of aggression or discord..pretty amazing considering the many people ...and the primitive place we had gathered...no running water, hot, dusty and dry...I saw no drug use and no alcohol and it wasn't the kind of place where there would have been an attempt to hide it...pretty cool...everyone was filled with the spirit of the music and the joy of coming together...a family...food sharing...hugs...love.

my Cosmic Cowgirl...

Would I do it again...? I can't wait...I would travel almost anywhere in order to spend time with with either of my daughters......and maybe I'm entering that second childhood, maybe, does it matter? I wasn't the oldest person there but there weren't many of us elders...I love young people...their energy...they have so much to share...Being welcomed to experience the things that make them joyful is a gift I highly recommend...if you get a chance to dance....dance...











....dancing and trancing...


Number 2 daughter and I on a trip a few years ago to San Francisco to pick up a Canadian cat at the airport.
We took a little side trip to the top of the world..Mt. Tamalpias...to take some photos for an cd album cover. A beautiful spot..one of the best places to watch the sun go down....

so much fun on that trip...
we had a friend with us, a music maker...he took the photo...
.the visit to the mountain was wonderful..you can see all of San Francisco bay from here...



.but the best part of the trip was the food...we were really doing a strict vegan food diet...traveling vegans have a hard time finding good food while traveling...but not in San Francisco..they have many good restaurants to choose from and two of the best are the Gratitude Cafe and Herbivore...
We were like starving people...
we went to Herbivore twice that trip...
and ordered a ridiculously large amount of food because we couldn't choose just one or two..
.the menu offers an overwhelming bounty of fresh, healthy,



beautiful offerings..like, grilled portobello mushroom over creamy polenta, shawarma-grilled seitan with hummus..ummm good...we went back for breakfast...
scrambled tofu with spinach and mushroom...
pancakes...
fresh fruit smoothies and fresh carrot, ginger, apple juice...
so good...I'm hungry...







Friday we are going on another little road trip...Jillian has invited me to go with her to a trance dance festival in Northern California...The Red Marine Festival 3 days of trance, tribal, techno music...Consciousness raising for some...a good party for others...maybe both for me...
We head out on Friday for 3 days of non-stop music...24 hours a day...with a primal rhythm..
we pitch our tent and dance.....
I'm going
because my daughter wants to share something with me that is a big part of her life...
dancing, trancing...consciousness raising..breaking down and building upward....
I will visitor to a 21 century gathering of the tribes...
If will be fun, enlightening, a bit of a challenge...
I'll come back different..
send me blessings...lol

,,,blessings




Beautiful Grandson and friend Gus
After a big day at dog beach!
He holds a huge place in my heart.
.I love him & he loves me..
happy.blessings

....mystery emblem


I'm always on the hunt for goodies for my Spirit Figures...the unusual...I found this shirt not too long ago...This emblem is on the back...the shirt seems to have been made at home...and this emblem seems to have been hand embroidered. .. It's about 15 inches long...What I'm wondering is if it means something universal that I don't recognize...?? So, I'm asking for help...does it resonate with you, or have you seen it before and know what it signifies? Any guesses?

Happy Saturday...It's beautiful in the central Sierra foothills today..hope it is where you are...

....what if???

Marilyn Suchan

This from a friend...

What if the point of life has nothing to do with the creation of an ever-expanding region of control?

What if the point is not to keep at bay all those people, beings, objects and emotions that we so needlessly fear?


What if the point instead is to let go of that control?


What if the point of life, the primary reason for existence, is to lie naked with your lover in a shady grove of trees?


What if the point is to taste each other's sweat and feel the delicate pressure of finger on chest, thigh on thigh, lip on cheek?


What if the point is to stop, then, in your slow movements together, and listen to the birdsong, to watch the dragonflies hover, to look at your lover's face, then up at the undersides of leaves moving together in the breeze?


What if the point is to invite these others into your movement, to bring trees, wind, grass, dragonflies into your family and in so doing abandon any attempt to control them?

What if the point all along has been to get along, to relate, to experience things on their own terms?

What if the point is to feel joy when joyous, love when loving, anger when angry, thoughtful when full of thought?


What if the point from the beginning has been to simply be?"

......pretending everything is alright



Behind the house, up on the hill there are hundreds of these beautiful Mariposa lilies...
they like it dry and hot.


Yesterday I picked my 12 year old grandson up from the school bus...

as soon as he was in the car he asked me about the Gulf of Mexico and the oil spill..

.a spill doesn't sound too bad, does it...
he wanted to know if it had been plugged up yet.



I told him that they had just finished cutting it and the cut was jagged so no one was sure if the cap would stay on...



He asked me if it was going to be alright

I thought for a moment he might cry and that I might too
...my immediate impulse was to tell him yes, it will all be alright
...but all the evidence and my inner knowing says the opposite


...It's not going to be alright...

this 'spill' is a big deal.....
we've all been taught that killing the ocean will led to extinction....
I needed to tell him my truth..

I don't want someone I trust to tell me one thing when all the evidence tells me the reality is really something very different...

I believe that's called gas-lighting and it's a powerful killer of trust...
and I don't do it....



but I didn't know what to tell him...

the possibilities are so horrific...


we will see a lot of the effects right away..

.many species are nesting and reproducing in the area...
we're talking about the extinction of hundreds of species...



We are also looking at health effects on people on countless people as the oil spreads along the coast...



But it's the cumulative effects over time that look so scary...it's becoming pretty clear that the immediate death and destruction is nothing like what may be coming down the road...




I was at a loss of what to say to my beautiful, concerned grandson...

the truth felt like too much of a burden to place on him, but a lie wouldn't work...

So I told him I didn't know...I just knew it wasn't good and that it was going to take few miracles to come out of this mess and that we,
as the people who make our homes on this planet need to demand accountability and do everything possible to let go our our oil addiction....



and you know what?
..... even that didn't feel good..

I don't see accountability happening, nor do I see a lessening of our addiction to all things oil,,,even if 'we the people' wanted change is there anyone listening?


...I think we may already be too late...it might take a while for the full impact to hit...but I see mass starvation as a real possibility and that might not take too long at all.




I couldn't tell my grandson that.

....mothers, daughters, friends

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This is the cover of a little journal Daughter #2 presented to me about two years ago...In side she had written this...
""My Dear Mommy (she calls me mommy when she is happy with me....if not, I am mother)
Please answer these questions for me in this book. I want to have a collection of information about you...your experiences, your thoughts, and your hopes. It means so much to me."
She didn't even have to say please...the fact that she was interested in my experiences, thoughts and hopes meant a lot to me.


Her questions were thoughtful...


Can you think of three days that stand out in you life as exceptionally happy?
I

If you, with the wisdom you have now, could talk to ourself at my age,
what advice would you give?

Do you remember the first boy who you cried about because you loved him? who/when


Could you sense my specific soul or personality while I was in your womb?


When did you learn that being creative wasthe road to joy?

There were 13 questions.

It took me almost a year to answer them....to give them the attention they deserved....

Not too long ago she gave it back to me...this is part of what she wrote...

"Reading you answers was one of the most touching, beautiful,
and significant experiences of my life... I love that you think in ways that our so creative. You are a big INSPIRATION to me!"

And she has asked 8 more questions..She want's to know more!! It makes my heart sing.


I've been thinking about the importance sacred circles play in the lives of women who are lucky enough to belong to one. In circles we can we can share our stories. Women know so much, experience so much...we have knowledge, wisdom...we are bursting with juicy creativity..let's gather and share, the world needs more feminine energy..
let's grow it together.

When women wake, mountains move..

Imagine a Woman


Imagine a woman who believes it is right and good she is a woman.

A woman who honors her experience and tells her stories.
Who refuses to carry the sins of others within her body and life.

Imagine a woman who trusts and respects herself.
A woman who listens to her needs and desires.
Who meets them with tenderness and grace.

Imagine a woman who acknowledges the past’s influence on the present.
A woman who has walked through her past.
Who has healed into the present.

Imagine a woman who authors her own life.
A woman who exerts, initiates, and moves on her own behalf.
Who refuses to surrender except to her truest self and wisest voice.

Imagine a woman who names her own gods.
A woman who imagines the divine in her image and likeness.
Who designs a personal spirituality to inform her daily life.

Imagine a woman in love with her own body.
A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is.
Who celebrates its rhythms and cycles as an exquisite resource.

Imagine a woman who honors the body of the Goddess in her changing body.
A woman who celebrates the accumulation of her years and her wisdom.
Who refuses to use her life-energy disguising the changes in her body and life.

Imagine a woman who values the women in her life.
A woman who sits in circles of women.
Who is reminded of the truth about herself when she forgets.

Imagine yourself as this woman.

“Imagine a Woman” © Patricia Lynn Reilly, 1995
www.imagineAwoman.com

The poem is copyrighted and may not be used without permission.

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