Priestess Year in Review

“May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven around the heart of wonder”

–J. Donohue

“The revolution must have dancing; women know this. The music will light our hearts with fire,
The stories will bathe our dreams in honey and fill our bellies with stars…”

–Nina Simons in We’Moon 2012

Happy New Year!

Two things I’d like to note as 2012 closes out and I welcome 2013: When I became ordained as a priestess with Global Goddess in July of last year, one of the commitments I made as part of ordination was to be of service in some way to the organization and to document my service to my community through the year. And second, after the ordination ceremony and I was all excited and saying to my boys, “I’m officially a priestess now!” they said, “what’s a priestess?” and I explained that a priestess was someone who does a variety of things including planning ceremonies and holding rituals. And, they said, “oh, you already were a priestess.” This might sound casual, but it was really meaningful to me because it affirmed that not only was I on the right path, but that I also wasn’t “pretending” or taking on a new identity or role I wasn’t ready for, I was already doing it–my kids saw it and some important friends in my life saw it also.

So, in keeping with these two things, this is my priestess year in review… 🙂

• Wrote articles for each one of the four issues of The Oracle (Global Goddess online publication) following my ordination in July. This was the commitment of service to the organization I made. I already have a couple of articles planned for the upcoming issues as well.
• Moderated at my UU church (only once in 2012. I’m on the schedule again for the spring).
• Planned at least six family full moon rituals (my own family only).
• Hosted winter women’s retreat
• Planned, hosted, and facilitated summer women’s retreat
• Facilitated a full series of Cakes for the Queen of Heaven classes (five weeks)
• Planned and facilitated what we termed a “journeyway” ceremony for a close friend—the ceremony was like our “traditional” mother blessing ceremonies, but had a threefold purpose and involved acknowledging miscarriage, celebrating the friend’s birthday, and holding a house blessing ceremony.
• Planned and facilitated a mother blessing ceremony for a new friend.
• Officiated at a wedding ceremony and handfasting in October.
• Planned and facilitated an overnight women’s retreat and SageWoman ceremony in November. This, for me, was the highlight of my service to my local women’s circle this year 🙂
• Officiated at a wedding ceremony and handfasting in December.
• Held a small winter solstice ritual for my immediate family and my parents.
• Planned and facilitated our first fireside ritual/ceremony and drum circle involving whole families (instead of either just women or just my own family) for New Year’s Eve last night.
• Not so much in service or in priestess work, I also had three guest posts published on the Feminism and Religion blog. And, I went to the Gaea Goddess Gathering in Kansas and brought back various ideas and resources for my local community (including the inspiration to purchase a big community/powwow drum).
  

  

  On priestess rocks, November 2012

  

  Second handfasting of the year

  

  Yule log from family winter solstice celebration

  
  

  

  New “medicine healer” ring

  

  Family full moon fun altar

  

  Spontaneous ritual with youngest child. She’s totally into it!

  
  

  

  Making a medicine bag at New Year’s Eve ritual.

  

  During ordination ceremony, July 2012

  

  Priestess sculpture

  
  

  

  Henna at GGG.

  

  At GGG in September.

  

  
  

  

  Waiting for a happy couple to arrive!

  

  Making a prayer flag at a mother blessing ceremony

  

  Gifts for Sagewomen.

  
  

  

  

  

  
  

  

  Sistrum

  

  

  Sagewomen preparing for honor!

  
  

  

  Circlets for sagewomen.

  

  New community drum (drum stand made by my dad).

  

  Tipi set up by my dad for the SageWoman ceremony.

  
  

  

  First effort at using real clay rather than polymer clay for my sculptures.

  

  Close of ordination ceremony, July 1

  

  Drawing for wheel of the year plate.

  
  

  

  Sculptures hanging out in the sunshine!

  

  Cakes “Gaia” logo

  

  
  

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  Handfasting with a lovely bride and handsome groom!

  

  2013 Full Moon Calamandala

Plans for 2013:

• Family full moon ritual each month. We meant to do one during every full moon in 2012, but there were various reasons why we didn’t actually achieve this every month. I would like 2013 to include all 13 moons. I am considering inviting other people to participate instead of only my own family.
• Facilitate the whole series of Rise Up and Call Her Name classes. I bought this program in 2010, it is high time I use it! I’m envisioning this as a once a month class, spread out over the whole year.
• Continue to hold quarterly women’s spirituality retreats, one during each season.
• Plan and host four seasonal rituals for whole families (not just women, not just my own family)
• Hold a house blessing/blessingway ceremony for a friend who is building her own house.
• Continue writing all over the place and taking classes at Ocean Seminary College.

I feel blessed by connection to others, my sense of community experience, a wonderful group of friends, and a supportive family! Welcome, 2013!

“I know myself linked by chains of fires,
to every woman who has kept a hearth.
In the resinous smoke
I smell hut, castle, cave,
mansion and hovel,
See in the shifting flame
my mother and grandmothers
out over the world.”
-–Elsa Gidlow (quoted in The Politics of Women’s Spirituality)

Someday…someday!