FULL MOON RITUAL January 2002

   Lyn's rented trailer is in upstate NY. It's a nice area. It's near Saratoga Springs where tourists come every summer for the race track and Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC). There are plenty of trees, streams, ponds, and a few lakes in the area. It's a growing area, but they are careful to preserve the atmosphere.

   Her place is about halfway between Saratoga and Ballston Spa. It's out of the way in a little, tiny trailer park. The road is lined with trees and the Kayderosseras creek runs right by it. The driveway in is called the "wagon wheel trail" by those in her household. Guaranteed to destroy your shocks. Lyn lives on lot #13. There is a gold number 13 on the front of the brown trailer. As you walk in from the front porch, it opens into the living room. On the left, in the kitchen, is a mattress standing on end.

   As you walk down the hall, the kids room and it's continual mess is on the left and then the closed door that is Bill's "cave" since he works nights. The bathroom is the last door on the left and the hall leads right down to the main bedroom. It's a spacious room. It has wood paneling and a light blue-grey carpeting. Directly ahead is a large bay window. It looks out upon two large pines whose branches brush the trailer in the wind. Out a bit farther is a trailer to the left, and to the center and right is a large field with trees along it's farther edges.

   In one corner is a hexagonal end table full of plants. It is more than just a plant table, it is a plant altar. A big pot in the center has a bright green plant that seems very small for the pot it's in. It's ringed by plants of various types, varieties, and sizes. They are well loved and Lyn is protective and proud of her small collection. In another corner is a small wooden printer stand. There is a loaf of bread, a bottle of wine, and a plate with cupcakes and a cheese pizza. In the center of the room is a cedar chest. The cedar chest has a white, linen cloth across it. On top of that is a rectangle of blue cloth with thistles around it's edges. It was a gift from a friend. On that are an assortment of candles and bowls. There is an incense holder and a few sticks of incense, a hand-made (not by Lyn) clay goblet with a pentagram on the front which contains some salt, another fired and glazed pitcher with some water, and a votive candle in a glass candle holder shaped like a tulip. To the side is a tall blue candle set in a bit of water. There are also candles placed about the room.

   Standing back, Lyn makes sure everything is there. Ooops! "I forgot some chairs and pillows for people to sit comfortably and some glasses and plates." She goes and gets those things.

   Now that everything is to her satisfaction, she takes a deep breathe and centers herself. She holds out her right hand and envisions blue energy shooting from her hand to form a barrier as she circles the room.

   Lyn opens the door and see those who have come. She opens the door wide and says, "Be welcome. May only those beings of benevolent intent be allowed within the circle. Please enter." She invites people to announce themselves as they come in, and then steps back...

   ...Boudica steps forward and takes the goblet from the altar. Smiling at Lyn, she turns, places her hand over the salt and says: "With the power of Earth, I consecrate this salt."

   She walks around the circle, and visualizes the soft feel of earth beneath her feet, the smell of the earth filling the trailer, warm, comforting, as she allows some of the salt to fall to the floor. "By the power of the earth, this circle is bound."

   Boudica returns to Lyn, and replaces the goblet and returns to her place in the circle, to await...

   ...until Deer, with a Scots Bonnet from the Hatteras shoreline, steps forward. He pauses for hugs - an especially long one for Lyn to say 'thanks for this moon' - before moving toward their altar. There, he plunges the shell into Lyn's pitcher of sweet water and withdraws it." Allowing some to drip lightly upon the altar, Deer states, "With the power of Water, I consecrate this vessel."

   He, too, walks about the circle....   not only with the smell of fertile earth in his nostrils, but the feel of cool dew-covered grass between his toes. Carefully, he allows the smallest mist of water to limn their circle - and also to asperse those gathered. "By the power of Water, this circle is bound."

   Upon completing his round of their sacred space, Deer returns to the altar and leaves the Bonnet there, before returning to his place and watching for...

   ...Pomb who is at home, sitting on the footstool before her low altar table, in the alcove of what was once a large closet. But the doors to this closet are off--way off! After several years of altar space that faced north, she is again facing east, the direction of new beginnings, new energy, and new creations.

   She lights the slim stick of Five Hills incense from the center candle and waves out the flame. The sweet, subtle scent wends upward in a spiral so tight and tiny it could pass for a vertical line. The fierce energy of this tiny spiral speeds the smoke higher, up to the ceiling, drilling through the ceiling, rocketing into the space above the apartment building. A rogue wind from the southeast catches it and sends the molecules of smoke spinning through the clouds, flying, homing in on its mark, covering miles in an instant. And then the wind is calm and the glittering plume of consecrated smoke finds its right place, dropping closer to earth and slipping through a window crack, bringing in with it a breath of the strong, evergreen, ever-living pines outside. The smoke spirals around the perimeter of the circle, sealing it by the element of air, and stirring the hair and the robes of the friends gathered at Lyn's as they smile at one another...

   ...Lyn looks thankfully at Boudica, Red Deer, and Pombagira for their help with the elements. She can feel the soft earth beneath her feet even though her brain tells her it's carpeting. She can feel the cool mist and soft breeze against her face. The warmth of fire makes the room feel cozy.

   "Through the years, the deities I look to and work with have expanded greatly. I started out a Christian, but found that the dogma and doctrines were stifling and denied essential parts of who I am. I still work with God. We seem to have an understanding, He and I. Even if few others understand or accept that tie I still have with Him.

   Thus being said, I ask that He lend his power and presence to this working." Lyn bows her head briefly as she feels a cool, masculine energy enter the room. She walks to the bay window. It's facing the wrong way to see the moon this early, but she knows that it's there and that they will all be able to see it later. "Luna, you are a part of me. I have always felt the call of the moon. I have danced barefoot in the wet grass by moonlight and felt your call. I have worked with Diana who has a moon aspect. Luna, I ask you to be here tonight; to lend your presence and aid to what we do here this evening."

   It's almost as if the room becomes flooded with moonlight. For a few moments, a silver glow outshines that of the golden, flickering light of the candles. Lyn looks around to see if anybody else sees it and whispers, "Thank you".

   Lyn kneels by her plant altar. At the base of it is a large rock. "Funny thing, this rock. We used this rock to awaken the earth and heal some land near here. We did that and so much more happened." A soft smile lights Lyn's face.

   "Gaia came. She came to me." A sense of wonderment and joy still remains despite the years between that time and now. "She came and called me to be Her's. She's the only being I have ever called "Mom" and been comfortable with it. She is the Great Mother and the only mom I've ever known."

   Lyn traces her fingers over the rock. The rough, cool surface feels comforting. Lyn's son often comes in the bedroom and stands on the rock. Another interesting thing about this rock is that Lyn can carry it relatively easily. Everybody else finds it to be *very* heavy. She looks up and touches the leaves of some of her plants.

   "Lady, please come tonight and be with us. Come be with me again as you were that night many years ago." Lyn can feel the sprites and elementals come that usually herald Her arrival. She feels a warm Presence and feels wrapped in it. "Be welcome, Mother. Thank you."

   Lyn looks around. "I don't want to hog the stage, so to speak. Would anybody else like to invite their deities? Please be welcome to." Then seeing that nobody wants to invite any other deities. She thinks upon it and decides to ask two more to come.

   "The Horned God, Cannons, The Consort, The Green Man; your various forms and names. You are new to my personal pantheon, but I cannot ignore your call. I have yet to explore much of what You are or to fully bring the potential of our relationship to reality. However, I would ask that you join us tonight." Lyn recalls Owl's mountain and the call she heard, the deer prints in the snow, the ray of light that broke through the clouds, and the voice of welcome she heard. It was a moment that will live with her all her life.

   She looks over to Red Deer. "Thank you again for your help to sort my initial impressions through and for all the information you gave me." She gives him a quick hug.

   Back in the center of the room, she looks thoughtful. "Brighid... there has been much talk of you lately. I have never, personally, worked with you before. But from all I've read and heard, it is very appropriate to invite you here tonight. Would you please come here tonight?"

   A gentle breeze ruffles the candle flames and circles the room. A fresh smell of mountain fields blows through with it. You can almost hear lambs in the background. Lyn stands for a moment to get a feel for the new energies.

   Lyn walks to the altar. She looks out the bay window at the bare trees shining silver in the moonlight. Though she can't see it in the dark, she knows that the field is brown and cold. Despite the recent "January thaw", there are still ice patches here and there.

   "We look and see winter. We feel the icy wind and wonder when the cold will end. The earth lies dormant...sleeping. We ask when She'll wake up. Very often, out lives reflect the macrocosm of the world. We hit rough patches in life. Times where everything seems to go wrong. We wonder of it will ever end; if we'll get beyond the season of winter in our lives to move beyond into spring. Sometimes we get caught in a negative cycle and we can't see an end. Imbolc is almost upon us. It is also called Candlemas and the Festival of Lights. Despite the snow and cold, it is the first spring sabbat. The longest night has come and gone. While we may not be able to see or feel it yet, the days grow longer and the earth awaits it's re-awakening.

   I'd like to use this as an opportunity to help those of us who are in a season of winter in our lives to break free of any negative cycles we may be in and to be able to move onward into our personal Spring. To move into a time of renewal.

   It's also an opportunity to be thankful that we've made it through winter and spring is in sight. Soon the crocus will poke through the snow and ice. Following that will be more early spring plants like the daffodil. The buds on the trees will beginning to swell as the sap begins to flow upwards from the roots. The birds will start returning and a warmth will be on the air.

   And so too, will rebirth happen in our lives. As painful as it may be, winter has it's own purpose. With the plants, the old plants can die off so new ones can be reborn in the spring. It is a time of hibernation for many animals and for the trees. Yes, it can be a time of death. But remember, there is also a time and place for that as well.

   In our lives, painful things can happen. While not everything may have an obvious purpose, most things help us learn a lesson. Sometimes, we need the old to "die" so that we can find something new. Or to see with new eyes. Or we need a time of dormancy before the rapid growth of spring.

   My general purpose tonight is three-fold: this is a FMR, since it's the closest full moon to Imbolc I'd like to herald in spring, and to bring healing and renewal to our lives."

   Lyn, while she might chatter like one of her totems, the squirrel...isn't normally this long-winded. So getting to business; she picks up a tall, blue, bubbly looking, cylindrical candle. "This was given to me many years ago. I never found the right time to use it, but something tells me that now is the time."

   It is a "coventry creation" candle. It's wonderful scent fills the room, even before it is lit. She closes her eyes and she can feel the energies that were imbued into it so long ago. Then, she gathers some of the energies around her and pours them in. Finally, she adds energy of her own. She lights it and puts it into a candle holder that has a small amount of water in it. She reads aloud the chant that came with the candle:

   "The female forces that I need,
   will come to me with all speed...
   Mistress Moon and Mother Earth,
   the Goddess form in all her worth,
   Gaia & Luna will start this call,
   words go out to bring them all...
   Saint Joan & Bridget hear my plea,
   Goddess of the Earth, Fire, Air, and Sea
   In perfect love and perfect trust,
   send to me what is just.
   Harming none and helping all
   is how it shall be
   This I make true
   Three by three by three."

   With that, Lyn passes the candle on...

   ...the air of the room is charged with the energies called tonight. People have not only come to be part of this FMR, but do their own as well.

   Despite the distance that separates each of them, they are still linked as well.

   Those at Lyn's felt Pomb's air call. They felt the incense swirl around the room and felt her presence among them. They could almost see her sitting in front of her altar on her foot stool.

   They know that Niv is in her own circle listening to the spirit's voices. The flowers laid upon her koi pond: crocus, daffodils, herbs, and onion. Is that their scent floating in the air?

   They know and can feel that others are doing their own things; separate yet together.

   ...Lyn walks back to the altar. She lights another candle, "This candle is for Nym and her family. They've endured many hardships and sorrows these last few months. May they find the strength to move beyond these hard times, healing, and renewal.

   There are many I know who could use some renewal and hope of a "spring" in their lives: Cory who is struggling with mental illness and depression, my Mother-in-law who just lost her father and is soon to have surgery, Greg's grandma Dolly who has been in and out of the hospital for almost a year now. I would ask for healing and hope for them.

   My family may be taking a huge step into the unknown. Whichever path we end up following, may it bring growth and happiness to our lives. We've been in a negative cycle and we need to break free." Lyn doesn't lay a physical offering on the altar, but feels as if she has laid her hopes and dreams there instead. She steps back and waits as...

   ...Boudica steps forward. She has a tree seedling in her hand. She is going to plant some trees on her property this year. She is also planting other "kinds" of trees this year, and it will prove to be a very interesting year.

   She asks for strength for all her trees, the wisdom to know where and when to plant them, and that they all take root and grow and mature.

   And those that don't, may they find a place to root and grow elsewhere.

   And, thanks for the help, Mom!

   She steps back to the circle to await...

   ...looking around and seeing that nobody else seems to want to petition, Lyn walks over to the food table. "As funny as it may seem, I picked pizza because my daughter had pizza and cupcakes at her birthday party a few days ago. " She shrugs and passes plates and cups around. The smell of pizza wafts around the room as she opens the boxes.

   Lyn pours a glass of wine. Then she breaks a loaf of bread and sprinkles it with some salt. "Wine so that you will never be thirsty, bread so that you may never know hunger, and salt so that your life will be filled with flavor." She passes them around. Taking a sip of the wine, Lyn closes her eyes briefly. She can feel the deities that are with them. She feels the swirls of energies of those who have come.

   "winter may not be completely over, but spring is around the bend. We've made it through so far, and for that I am very thankful. New prospects and possibilities are opening up. They scare me but excite me at the same time. It feels right. I have to let go of the control I try to exert and trust that if it comes, it is meant to be. If it doesn't , then it wasn't meant to be. I'm not good at blind trust or leaps of faith. But then again, we have to trust that winter will end and spring will begin in it's right time.

   I always mention the big things I'm thankful for; my partners, my friends, my kids, ect....   But I have so many other things to be thankful for as well; my plants that I treasure, that I'm still here to have those things, the adversity we've run into because it's helped me to grow and to learn my strengths and weaknesses, the connection I have with my deities, and so many other things great and small." So saying, she takes a bite of bread and looks to see if anybody else wants to step forward...

   ...Deer gratefully accepts Lyn's offer of wine and salted bread and replies, "May you never thirst nor hunger." While the pizza smells wonderful, he decides to approach their circle's center again for a moment, and to let dinner wait a bit.

   Energized from several days of outdoor activity, allowed by the recent exceptional weather, Deer calls out: "I see the sun lengthen its journey across the sky, I hear the frogs sing of midwinter awakenings in their puddles, I smell the earth which begins to wake beneath the leaf mold, I taste the cold crystal waters of winter snow-melt, I feel the sap rise root to trunk and leafward, I thank my Goddess and God for each of these gifts and uncountable others."

   Returning to his place, Deer takes another sip of wine, and waits...

   ...after everybody has had their fill, Lyn goes back to the center of the circle. She thinks upon the goals of this ritual: to move from winter into spring, both seasonally and in our lives, to give thanks, and to share this time with one another and the deities called to be present.

   "Gaia, Mother...thank you for being with us. We are glad the season of spring will soon be upon us. I think many of us are ready for the re-awakening spring brings. I know that I certainly am." Feeling the warmth that only Mom brings, Lyn feels sure that all things will be in their own time.

   Lord, Sun God, Cannons...you were re-born at Yule. Now you are growing, moving through the cycle into your full glory. Just as you; I think we all experience death great and small, both physical of others and eventually ourselves, and the "little deaths" of endings. And just like you, we have new beginnings and can be renewed and reborn.

   Luna, we do the FMR in honor of you. In keeping with the theme this month, you wax and wane, Yet, you are always there. You change yet there is consistency in that change. Maybe we can learn from that example; that no matter what changes occur through the cycles, we are still ourselves. That underneath the seemingly constant transitions, there are some things we can always count on.    Brighid, thank you for coming. As you are often associated with Candlemas, I thought it would be appropriate to ask you to be here. You are also associated with healing and birth. At times, we can all use some healing and the birth of new things in our lives. I look forward to another new beginning of working with you more.

   God, though I have moved beyond the strict doctrines of Christianity, I still look to you in my life. I guess it's more proof of that old saying, "The more things change, the more they stay the same." Thank you all for being present and lending your divine touch's to this FMR. Go in peace" One by one, Lyn takes down the elements and then the energy circle. "This circle is open but never broken. So be it."

   Then she says, simply, "This circle is now closed. So mote it be."

   As everybody wanders out, she senses how clean the air feels. The house feels cleansed and charged. She thinks to herself, "It feels like spring."