Drummaking Ceremony rescheduled for May 6, 2017

What tumultuous times we are living in. At least there are some predictable and welcome sights, like beauriful buttercups brimming with sunshine and golden spears of forsythia blooming. The spotted foliage of the trout lilies is emerging. This week I saw the first little lavender hepatica flowers in the woods. The crocuses are soon to burst forth with their happy little faces. I am yearning to get my fingers in the dirt and to prune away last year's brown peony stems to make way for the luscious new growth. While it is still early for most planting, the seed catalogues are arriving in droves and the seeds are calling out in their quietly loud way to be selected. While the political landscape appears bleak the forest and garden will soon be brimming with flowers and early spring greens. The days will warm us and our bare feet will soon seek out the cool earth as we recommit ourselves as stewards and guardians of this gorgeous Gaia, green goddess planet, to another season of growing. We will grow food and flowers, community, solidarity and strength to carry on our quest for justice and peace. Just like the seasons and the perennials, we will keep coming back, keep showing up with our bright faces and strong hearts. We will keep raising our voices and reaching out heart to heart to rekindle passion and kindness among us. Take some deep breaths, connect with people you love, take breaks and come back even stonger. Our communities need us, our families need us and the earth needs us to be strong and fearless. Strength in numbers, call a friend and take an acton. Your heart will grow in capacity

Fire Ceremonies 2016

Sunday March 19, 2017 5:30 pm CANCELLED DUE TO FAMILY GATHERING, HAPPY EQUINOX!

Sunday June 25, 2017 5:30 pm

Come bring your inspiration or find some here for yourself. The fire is where we lay down our fears and excuses and take responsibility for what we are willing and able to do to make this world a better place right now! Take strength, courage, love, light, growth, resilience, clarity, innocence, playfulness, and joy away with you. You will have the opportunity to release beliefs, grief, feelings, thoughts, relationships or anything else that is hampering your ability to be fully and completely who you are by offering them to the fire. We will witness each other as we make new agreements with spirit and dream our lives into being. We will feed the holies and ask their assistance in co-creating ourselves, our thoughts and our lives as we wish them to be. If your health and circumstance permit you to stay for the entire ceremony we appreciate that greatly and it is always ok to take care of yourself or your children so please plan accordingly. This is not about rules or permission, it is about respecting ourselves and others,witnessing and being witnessed in sacred community. The choice is always yours!

Bring a chair, flashlight, drum, rattle, closed water bottle and dress for outdoors (if super cold or heavy rain we'll be indoors by the woodstove). Feel free to bring some healthy food to share if you are so moved. If you are drawn to be here please call or email Miriam at (919) 304-5754 or melieber@mebtel.net so I’ll know how many people to expect and give you directions if needed. Come prepared for both indoor and outdoor conditions weather depending. I invite all women to wear a skirt or sarong over pants to honor our sacred grandmothers and the circle of life. There is never a fee for ceremony but Gifting is appropriate and appreciated to support the life and work of the elders who dedicate their lives to keeping the old ways available and for wood and supplies needed for ceremony and the upkeep of the land.

NEW SHAMANIC HEALING CIRCLE

This circle is currently full but there is a wait list for anyone interested should shifting occur.

Do let me know of your interest. If enough people are interested perhaps a second group could form.

Spirit has been whispering in my ear for a bit now to start another circle that meets on a regular basis (bi-weekly for starters) to deepen our relationship with our guides and helpers, to heal ourselves , to dream to the sacred beat of the drum, to share wisdom teachings and step out of the frenetic pace of life, to be authentic clear channels for spirit. I am proposing some dates (alternate Monday evenings beginning on All Souls Day). Once a group is formed we can decide together if these dates and times will work or need to be changed. I will be sharing teachings from the elders I have had the privilege to sit with, from my fifteen years of annual pilgrimage to vision quest in sacred community (as quester and supporter) and as one whose life purpose it is to serve and feed the people on this path with heart. I invite you to bring your wisdom teachings, healing gifts and spirit of love. The drums are calling to be played and for their medicine to be shared in the service of humanity.

If you too feel this call, please let me know your intentions, needs, desires and willingness to commit to holding sacred space together. I can be reached at 919 304-5754 or 919 618-4919.

A suggested donation for the holding of the space and facilitation of the circle: $20.00-25.00.

As always the amount of your gift is between you and spirit.

Little Boys and Girls Sweat Lodge

( Available by request unless specific dates are listed herein and/or in addtion to dates listed.)

Workday to rebuild the lodge for the New Year: Friday December 30th

Lodge to Ring in the New year: Saturday December 31st

The lodge is poured by Miriam / Firebird in the tradition passed down to me by my beloved Elder Sharon Mitchell. This is a beautiful teaching lodge that has the strength and heat for those with experience and the gentleness and ease for those who will join us for the first time (which is how it came to be known as the Little Boys and Girls Lodge). It is not a lodge specifically for children as some have asked, but supervised children are welcome to attend ceremonies here unless otherwise specified. Please notify me if spirit is calling you to join us, so I can let you know how to prepare and know how many people are coming. Please know that we need at least 8 people to pour a lodge due to all the preparations involved so let us know if you would like to join us in ceremony.

People always ask me "how long does a sweat lodge take?" My first thought is how much we need these ceremonies to take us back to soul time where it is the experience, the prayers, the being together in community, the work as worship that really matter and not the construct of time that we are forced to run our lives by. I have learned for myself to not schedule anything else on lodge days as I step outside of "time" to be present to what is, the stones, the fire, the people and their prayers, the feast and then basking in the richness afterwards. Please take care of yourselves however you need to with "time". You are welcome to join us for the time you can be with us and if you need to leave due to other commitments that is yours to keep track of. My wish for you is that you can be timeless with us and sink into the ceremony as it unfolds organically. If for some reason you need to leave during the lodge please be sure to let me and/or the firekeeper know ahead of time so we can assist you.

We usually light the fire around 9 am and close the ceremony with a feast in the afternoon after cleaning up the ceremonial grounds. It is tradition to leave a place better than you found it. Please bring a dish to share for the feast following the lodge.

Workdays : I'm looking forward to hearing from those of you who want to build this community, be you newcomers, or those who have been here often to share in the love of lodge from beginning to end.

We can always use help with gathering or purchasing, and splitting and moving wood, raking, moving blankets, etc. We are in need of stone people if you can bring some stones that have not been in an active creek bed (cantalope size) If you have a truck and/or chain saw and want to help gather some wood between lodges please let me know so we can find times to work together, it is an ongoing need. The preparations are part of the ceremony and are a labor of love and communion with the land, the tall standing ones, the stone people, mother earth, the water and help deepen one’s experience of the ceremony as we joyfully prepare the grounds together.

Contact Miriam/Firebird at 919 304-5754 or melieber@mebtel.net if you are called to attend. Please RSVP with contact info if you would like to join us. I will let you know what to bring, how to find us and how to best prepare once I know you are coming. Feel free to call with any questions as well. Checking in the day before lodge to verify last minute information or changes due to weather, illness or attendance is strongly encouraged as we have to have a certain number of people to hold this particular ceremony.