Seemingly symmetrical symbiosis souls and spaces
referencing reflections refraction religious reservoir remembered recently.
Surface appearance and the deeper interior dimension of being existing within the obvious.
I had my wife Susan take pictures with her phone of our local spot above.
all of the photos in this post, most all in the blog - my wife the artist, her personal phone the artificial tool with genius abilities and a sensitive touch screen.
I have come to rely on the images as a focus or trigger for words and writing that I regularly ritually express myself here, a place of sorts.
spirits of place
sometimes the settings and functions of the aware magic tool do not show us what is seen as true to our natural vision.
The partnership inherent in tool use becomes intimate and familiar.
The relationship between perception and inspiration=expression feels similar.
Capturing the essence of the moment
with the best of the magic tool's ability
without later manipulating or editing
Peoples and Placenames
The core of Our Whole Grove consists of my wife and I who are not from here and a person who was a ADF member who grew up comparatively local.
Elizabeth
We have celebrated around a hundred ritual holidays together a few workshops, but to my memory no unscheduled field trips till the curators talk at the Woodstock Artists Association& Museum the end of this January passed.
We accepted the front row seats offered to us in the big back gallery next to the screen for the projected power point in front of the hung paintings of the exhibit the speaker Evan Pritchard was just starting.
I had been in that place many times before over many years,
a member when first moving up from the city letting it lapse years back after copping an attitude from the crowded group show in the basement gallery, if I remember correctly, there is a lot going on with people and spaces there. a consistently good place a good organization, a good place to recognize.
I have seen and heard the person many times before over many years,
it used to be that my multiple sign-up sheets became multiple E - mails with attachments somehow different from one another. Seems like that got cleared up years ago, if I remember correctly. He was a regular performer at Clearwater's Great Hudson River Revival at Croton Point Park when I was there.
it has been years since I have had an opportunity to see him. It felt good to see him present and presenting live in special shared place. I felt good about being there.
I anticipated his ceremonial opening, flute playing, language knowledge expecting his insights on the names of places that were the subjects of local landscape based around the collection of the Association.
I wasn't expecting him to repeatedly reference The Olive Free Library in West Shokan and its museum as a resource which coincidentally is the place, I last exhibited the watercolor painting Metamorphosis in the fifth annual small works group show Pandemonium that had just closed earlier in the month.
He talked about the people and place associated with the local spot that my wife took the photo with at the top of this blog post an unnatural landscape the waterways altered the place and its features changed.
Strangely closer to home than I would have expected. Asho-Attien is Munsee " strong rapids" used by the village that was around Bishops Falls mentioned as a landmark in the Esopus Munsee treaty of 1665.
That becomes the origin of private property ownership and development in the place that I am blessed to find and buy to live and work on for the last twenty-three years.
a formally recognized relationship between person and place/space
clear boundaries with defined responsibilities and accountability for the actions that take place within.
I am not inclined to feel that land and structures are my materials to shape just because I can.
It is not only my playground after all.
It may be that magical sacrifice brought my wife and I together, we feel that our kindred spirits brought us to this place together and the place influenced and assisted our partnership of spiritual and artistic practice.
Elizabeth brought her copy of Oak Leaves The Quarterly Journal of ADF spring 2023~Issue No. 100
with my work on the cover to share with the others who gather for the formal scheduled Grove(protogrove)Holiday of Imbolg before the ritual starts at the close to the house circle off the deck.
The Editor-in-Chief Rev. G.R. Grove included my bio statement in their Column.
I don't know who sees what, but I feel good about contributing and connecting, having a presence within that space.
pagan priest of place in print presently on paper a picture painted by me here at my house.
Rev. Bryan Perrin is a unnatural awareness for me, a cultivated sensitivity to responsibility and accountability as specialists in a field with the ability to truthfully observe and challenge the roles and practices of spiritual community and assumptions about authority and hierarchy as well as the use of manipulation and coercion in religious teaching, particularly notions of afterlife suffering.
for the most part my sacred duty is focused on sacred occasions,
fire -the seasonal holiday ritual sacrifices and omens the sharing of the waters of life.
I do my best to keep things on track and move it along in a way that doesn't overtly direct awareness of active participants, invited guests, or onlookers.
Outdoor all weather group ritual observances are occasions to relate and open oneself to experiences outside of controlled environments. There is something shared that is genuine authentic and truthful in live group experience with what nature has to offer.
The partnership inherent in use becomes intimate and familiar.
The relationship between perception and inspiration=expression feels similar.
Capturing the essence of the moment
with the best of the magic tool's ability
without later manipulating or editing
Peoples are Placenames
Language is the process of describing natural phenomenon in word story.
Nature exists as a soul filled real place before we develop a shared vocabulary to try to understand it.
I titled this blog post with the name of the naturalist guild of ADF's proposed course that was being presented to the clergy council as a elective in the clergy training program. I have written before in this my sacred blog about the awkward feelings associated with creating and participating in suggested paths of action for others that I do not know, asked to imagine that there are people who will find good and benefit from their participation in the program, valuing my work and contribution.
Surface appearance and the deeper interior dimension of being existing within the obvious.
Rev Barbara Wright passed away while I've been writing this, I don't know how she felt about this specific element of ADF study, but I know she took it all on during some inconvenient times in her life.
I met Barbara in the old days before the dedicants program of ADF, she was from Wild Onion Grove out of Chicago we worked together a little on what was a precursor to the seers guild.
She was very direct and outspoken independent thinking voice generous with her knowledge.
She also had a bullshit intolerance that I can relate to and continue to relate to.
Divination and omen seeking are the repeated reference reassurance tool use for relationship.
Transe states and meditation practices simulate relationship between perception and intuition=reception feels similar. questioning and listening for an answer
When someone's body is no longer the container of their soul it is obvious that death is natural process.
Our natural state of awareness has been conditioned to tune out most but our language.
which is the process of describing natural phenomenon in word story.
Nature exists as a soul filled real place before we develop a shared vocabulary to try to understand it.
Thank You ADF
sometimes the settings and functions of the aware magic tool show me what is
