fantasy – Just Life With Denise

My eyes twinkled and excitement coursed through my veins, anticipation building for the Beltane celebration at a special and tucked away sanctuary of local standing stones and labyrinth we are gathering at, it whips through my mind briefly and tugs out fond memories of my recent adventure to Scotland and the very ancient stones I had visited there. I stand here twisting and braiding my hair and carefully adorning each braid one (3 in total) with 3 shells- Why Three Shells? It is something I have always known to do, unexplainable to me but know it is just the way it should be done -but the number three carries strong symbolic weight across many “pagan” traditions: for example

Triple goddess: maiden, mother, crone (moving into my “crone era-wise, wisdom)
Three realms: land, sea, sky
Life cycles: birth, life, rebirth
Balance and harmony

Using three shells brings a sense of completion, balance, and sacred triad energy…creation, growth, abundance …also I might mention the Holy Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost (I’ll probably be scolded by someone about the appropriateness of including in a post about Beltane 🤷‍♀️🙄😬 just pointing out the concept of the number 3 holds significance in many thought) so I continue to adorn my hair-

I intuitively reach for my amber necklace, a gift from a friend brought back from Europe so somehow also feels “appropriate” and while not a traditional crystal, in the usual sense (as it is fossilized tree resin, often millions of years old) think of its organic origin. Amber is strongly associated with warmth, sunlight, and life force, protection, grounding and calming energy.

In many traditions, amber is thought to “hold” energy from the past, making it powerful for reflection, ancestral connection, and gentle cleansing. Making it in my mind, PERFECT for a Beltane celebration. What is Beltane you ask? Beltane is an ancient Celtic festival (Edinburgh has a huge one) marking the midpoint between spring and summer. It celebrates:

Fertility, growth, and abundance
Fire, passion, and vitality
Union of masculine and feminine energies
The peak of spring’s life force

Traditionally, people lit bonfires, danced with ribbon, and colorful scarves and attire around the Maypole, and honored the natural world in full bloom, gifts of shared food and feasting, enjoying nature.

As I approach the venue, Celtic music softly playing on my speakers, my windows rolled down, the flow of air through the open portals tossing my hair around in wild frenzy, a dance as the seashells dangling in my hair jingling from their rings whip about, bouncing and twirling against each other. I notice how vibrant green the leaves of trees are, the faint waft of some flowering plants/trees (likely culprits of my allergies I’ve battled of recent) delightfully fragrant and I am glad I’ve doubled up on my allergy meds. I hear running water to my right some where amongst the thick vegetation, hidden from my sight here on the road as I negotiate a turn, I smile and think how amusing to be turning down a road called “Ireland Rd” on my way to a Celtic celebration of Beltane-I amuse easily, but do wonder if it was intentional or just something I noticed? Pulling in and parking, I grab an armful of my things and make my way through a brushy trail, the birds flitting from tree to tree to bush around me, and then I step into the opening and view of the labyrinth-while just tender and new in it’s spring growth, not in full splendor can tell how magnificent it must be in full foliage and beauty-the sense of peace and presence of this spot, filling the corners of my eyes with tears of an emotion I’m not sure I fully understand-the tall trees encircling this beautiful laid out spot for reflection standing as guardians-PERFECTION my excitement now almost uncontainable I set my things in a space and adventure down the other trail I noticed…leading to a most inspiring sight of blue sky a peek of Mt Hood in her glory and the amazing circle of standing stone-can you feel the magic? I surely did-but maybe that is the magic we all hold in ourselves if we only let loose enough, are authentic enough, to let ourselves experience it? The magic we carry with us every moment of everyday? Standing here deep breathing, momentarily alone, as I hear laughter and greetings behind me-we are gathering-I am again moved by emotion, in awe and appreciation of nature and her gifts, honored to be invited to take part, share and play in the magic of this day and these people-let’s make merry and mischief 🥰🔥😄

With Light, ✨