CALL TO WAKE

Greetings to the Winter

To the cold winds moving in
Greetings to our Fathers & Mothers gone by
Come again to gather by the fire light

Nature is gently & not-so-gently pushing us now to come home ~
To come inside to the warmth of hearth & heart.
So let us listen ~
Listen to the rhythm & reflection of the bare trees
Listen to the slowness & stillness of the water & soil

Let go & let be
Give space for the Dreaming & Storytelling
Gathering & giving thanks
Recollecting & regenerating strength for what is to come.

Great changes are taking place, within & without…as is the nature of things. Let them change. A battle is being waged for your heart. For your heart, because your mind & actions will follow from t[here], and with them, your God-given power to both create & destroy.

THIS IS A CALL TO WAKE.

A ‘wake’ is an old Celtic tradition in which the family of a deceased person would gather around the body after they had died to mourn together before the person was buried. The word wake stems from old English & Germanic words meaning “to observe” or “stand guard.” During a wake, the people would share stories, spirits (alcohol), songs, and laments to honor the deceased & nourish the sense of togetherness for the living. It was also thought of as a way to protect the body & the family from negative or evil spirits entering & taking advantage of the occasion.

What is it we are called to wake for in these times? Perhaps it is our familiar sense of ‘normality’ which has so suddenly passed away–another victim of the pandemic & its policies. Or maybe it is opportunities which we have lost, both individual & collective ones for growth within any number of projects, initiatives, small businesses, and community & family gatherings. Opportunities to learn from one another and grow closer together, to join our power in facing some of countless other social, economic, and ecological issues in need of our loving attention & action. Opportunities to accompany and learn from our elders, who have for the past two years been largely sitting or even dying alone along with years of stories & vast stores of life experience. Or perhaps there has been a real physical death within your weave of relationships.

Well, what’s gone is gone…and yet, nothing is lost. The death of someone or something is always a doorway for new Life. It is perhaps most clear to see (& unfortunately not always the case) in the passing of a loved one: the crossing of a soul and the time before & after yields a huge concentration of energy by means of love shared; all of this person’s relationships are called togather in  honor of their love shared with/for the dying & each other. Ancestral traditions such as wakes knew about this sacred & valuable potential of such powerful points of transition. Even though the one dying has to cross over alone–wholly for & unto themselves–the event of their death is a communal experience with the potential to provide immense nutrients & richness for the community’s continued cycle of life.

We deprive ourselves of those nutrients and delay our collective potential for new birth when we lock up the body (literally or figuratively) in a concrete box and forfeit any obligations to gather in community & sit with Death. Fear is a major wrench in the natural tendency & movement of Life to grow & move forward, not despite but with & through challenges.

Beyond Love shared, the experience of Death also calls into question for all wakers the meaning of Life & our individual/collective legacies, asks of us to shed dysfunctional distortions & over-layers to get to the core of what truly matters, and puts into new perspective what it is we truly want to do with our precious energy & time. Honoring the dead does not entail the persecution of the sickness or each other, nor is it about mulling around over the injustices of man & nature or how things could or should have been. Rather, it is about utilizing wisely that highly concentrated energy of vast creative potential, which exists within that bitter-sweet spot between death & birth. It is about honoring the whole, continuing circle of Life by integrating the lessons & gifts of past cycles & elevating the beginning of the new cycle…thereby creating from the circle an upward spiral.

NOW IS THE TIME,

with the gentle & not-so-gentle nudging of the Winter, to gather ourselves, to preen our feathers, to integrate all aspects of self into wholeness, to distill our experiences and let the wisdom thereof ferment deep within our bellies, to go within & select the most precious seeds of our own existence in preparation for Spring. Let us sit with that which has died, waking as we watch the nutrients therein sink deep into the soil bed of our consciousness & be transformed. Let us stand guard against negative forces of fear & illusion which would seek to take advantage of this highly charged, sensitive time of transition. Let us elevate through our thoughts, words, and actions the birth of a new cycle for ourselves, our families, our communities, and the Earth herself.

• What is it we want to usher in come Springtime?
• What is asking of our loving attention & full presence in this moment now?
• To what end (& beginning) do we want to direct the powerful, personal & collective creative energy of the current times?
• What makes us strong? What defines us & strengthens us as a People?
• What kinds of life-preserving & life-sustaining clues, stories, & gifts have our ancestors left for us to be able to adapt & thrive? What are they still saying now ~ through you?
• What kind of world, planet, community do we want our children to live in, the 7th generation coming?
• What are our own unique gifts, sacred desires & seeds of our hearts? Have we been fully honoring & tending to those seeds?

In full transparency, I have not been tending to and honoring one specific seed & gift in my life ~ that gift is the Word. Words received from wise ones, words exchanged in context of family and community, the power to weave & create through speaking, writing, and singing. I intend to cultivate and nourish this seed in my own life in the coming months by sharing more written Word ~ some of my personal or favorite received answers to the above questions. I invite your engagement and discussion, guarding the hope in my Heart that this Word may grow into life-sustaining actions to strengthen & renew ourselves & all of our relations.

Thank you for listening ~ with your eyes, ears, hands, feet, & Heart!

Beannachtaí,

~ Ness