We Need Each Other
While many know that I am an ordained Minister of Her Walking Prayer, very few know that I am also a member of The Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids. This spiritual path speaks to me with its emphasis on the sacredness of all life, and our part in the web of creation. It also teaches of the magic of being alive, of being present in each moment, and of honoring connections. Our health and wellbeing depend on one another.
I am writing this in the early hours of December 23rd; a time of in between. In order to understand this, one must understand that the year can be broken into the 13 moon cycles and a day. Each moon cycle is tied to the energy of a tree that influences personality, similar to one’s astrological sign. Beginning on December 24th, every 28 days is associated with a different tree energy, until December 22nd. This leaves December 23rd as what some refer to as The Nameless Day; or the Feast of Potentials… of holy possibility. But more on that soon.
Last night, my partner planned a wonderful date night. We saw a movie by a brilliant filmmaker, Guillermo del Toro, called Nightmare Alley, and went to dinner at a local Italian place. The restaurant is small, ten tables max, so reservations are encouraged. I am a planner. It helps to ease the tension in my neurodivergent mind, but I can also acknowledge how planning sometimes limits experience. We showed up to the restaurant without a reservation and were gifted our moment of pause by an outdoor fire.
Within minutes, another couple arrived. They were from the foothills and waiting for the rest of their party to show up. It was a birthday celebration; the first time they had gotten together with this group since the start of the pandemic… which provided an opening for the questions that I think dominate most communication between strangers these days.
“So, have y’all got Covid yet?” This question is odd to me because on the surface it feels like small talk, but it’s not. It’s a private question that is being thrown around in public so much it’s like a reflex, almost like a “bless you.” My partner and I looked at one another and then answered the question, which was met with a follow up, “Are y’all vaccinated then? My wife had Covid in April, but we’re vaccinated now.”
I found myself in a nameless space last night as these questions were being asked. It was a point of witness of each potential outcome of the conversation. I could choose to get frustrated by what could be seen as an overly personal interaction with a stranger; or, I could see it through the eyes of grace. This man was gifting us with kindness and connection in the best way he knew how after being stuck inside for two years. I chose the latter and immediately felt a love so strong come from the center of my being and wrap around him and his wife. We connected over two closed restaurants in the foothills and were given recommendations for what we could try as replacements. The rest of their party joined them and they walked inside.
Once inside, the intimate atmosphere was cozy… another experience I have missed for nearly 2 years as I tend to prefer eating outdoors. Halfway through our dinner, I noticed the tables start to grow silent. A woman was fighting to hold back tears as her boyfriend stood… diners grabbed their phones and captured the moment where he dropped to one knee and asked her to marry him. The tables erupted with applause and in that moment, everything was so full. We paid for the couple’s meal, another table sent over bottles of prosecco, another gift cards. The people who caught the experience exchanged contact information with the couple to send the videos. We held one another in a shared sacred moment, and it was in this moment that I felt like I really knew the magic of the season… the magic of our collective existence.
There are times when I am working in ceremony where I am overwhelmed by the amount of love I can feel from the universal oneness. And it’s not that I can’t see the dark— I am aware of the pain and suffering and how beings can act when operating from that space, and feel isolated. But, just as the year can be broken into two between our descent into the dark and the promise of the light, so can our beings. We are both. I am born under the magic of the Willow tree. My magic is rooted in the power of love. My love surrounds you, holds you, and whispers to you the secrets of the universe.
And the secret is this; we need each other. We need these moments of connection. We need to get comfortable with the sacred pause and choosing our actions and responses in ways that build love. Today, on the Nameless Day— on the Feast of Potential, in our holy moment of reflection between the descent and our return to light— let us plant these offerings in the fertile soil. Let the love from our fiery hearts warm the seed and shape our collective future.
