Brook and Watersong were the music path facilitators. Brook has had a couple of hit singles and is well known in the Reclaiming community. He’s been around for a long time and he is very centered and grounded. He loves to tell stories and use his experiences to demonstrate what has worked for him. He wants to be heard and he is and he is like a cute little puppy when he receives praise. (Which is truly an endearing thing to see.) He is brilliant on the acoustic guitar and can make it do things that it seems it should not be able to do. He has learned to drum fabulously and use the rhythm and music he makes to facilitate rituals in a mastered way. Brook is very obvious and upfront with showing his talents (as one would expect of someone who is accustomed to the stage) and it is all very natural and as much a part of him as his hands.

And then we have Watersong. Now, to get a feel for her do this: know that her name is Orion Watersong. Now, let that roll off of your tongue a few times. Lastly, close your eyes, roll her name off of your tongue one more time and allow the image to form in your mind of who she is that holds that name. Yup, that’s her.

She hangs back a bit, is more low key, but just oozes talent from every pore. To hear her clear sweet voice will have you fall in love instantly while the goosebumps chase up and down your arms. And she’ll have you believing that you can sound the same when you sing. She is subtle and powerful with a strength that shines through almost as clearly as her voice. She guards herself a bit, but hug her and the guard melts. Her talent is not limited to music. You should see how she paints. Plus she can paint on people! Squirming, talking, breathing people. The art she created on herself and on others was mindblowing. Below is a sample of her work. I admired a butterfly wing she had painted on one side of her face so she created this:

Wow.

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 Ritual Music Priestessing was the official name of my path. Last offering of it was called soundscaping which is also accurate. I hadn’t paid much attention to the description of the path as I was not going to take it as was mentioned in my first witchcamp post. Ha! We did discuss theory, but it was mostly practice. And it was mostly voice practice. There was some drum instruction and there were ample opportunities to use the drums and other instruments. Knowing me as I do I opted out of using the drums for our rhythm assignments. I knew if I used the drums I would also use them to hide behind and not use my voice unless forced. (Knowing one’s flaws is useful. Knowing one’s tendency to take the easy way and battling that is a bit harder.)

We called elements with sounds. We called elements with movements that others added the sound for. We did the same for invoking Gods. We cast circles with sound. We talked about directing energy in ritual and how that was not our job. Musicians in ritual can help raise and lower the energy, but the focus is in following the energy where it is going as opposed to directing it. Truthfully energy in ritual should go where it will and attempting to take it from the group and thrust your will upon it to go where you (personally) want it go is not conducive to good group ritual. Yes, there are keepers and directors, those who help keep the shape and the container and help it to escalate. Different tasks those are than directing it. Especially for musicians. So that was fun and fascinating.

Sound being used as a hook, as emphasis for certain parts in ritual. Feeling the energy of the rite as it unfolds and using the hook appropriately and in a timely manner, not by specific preset timing. I did this with a simple egg shaker during the Pearl Pentacle trance ritual. Plus I got to greatly improve my technique or staying halfway down in trance without bobbing up and down. Saweet!

Drum beats for trance were gone over, when you want a steady beat the whole time people are down. Our two doing that beat during the Pearl trance were great. That steady beat for 45 minutes is not an easy thing. They worked the rhythm to help pull people up at the end of trance. They helped weave the energy for the spiral dance at the end. 

Soundscaping is all sounds – breaths and clicks and snaps and claps. Voice in songs, chants, and tone. Drums and and shakers and tambourines. We had homework and we created chants for one of them. I used mine for anchoring the musicians in the underworld for the Persephone ritual. But toning I used the most because it fit the energy that night. However, the chant was good and has already been borrowed to be used at an intensive in CA for a different underworld Goddess. I am fairly good with words so it stands to reason I would be good with chants, also.

The woman who is borrowing my chant along with Brook for their intensive was amusing when I said, "He (Brook) told us to write a chant, so I did." Her: "He told you to write a chant and you wrote this," she said with dismay. Me: [confused look] "It was homework." (Meaning so of course I did it. Sometimes I forget words are not so easy for everyone.) Her reply: "I want to work with you." I was so chuffed by that. *grin*

To come home so sick for 2 weeks and have such a hurting scratchy throat was very very hard because I want to use the skills I’ve learned. I want to keep them fresh and improve them. I cannot wait to get all my strength back!

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"I see your desire, sticky and sweet,

Your eye shine, with Divinity."

Final song chant for last ritual in the story arc of Psyche and Eros. Created by Evelyn, a member of the Ritual Arc Team and a participant in the Ritual Music Priestessing path. This will be pertinent in a later post.

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While it is true I have no previous camps to compare this one to I can tell you the experience was amazing for me and by accounts of others who have been to camp in the past (some who’ve attended for a decade) this year was a banner year all around.

This year’s Reclaiming Intensive by Spiralheart was held at Four Quarters Farm in Artemis, PA. The story arc was Psyche and Eros and you can find the story here. All five parts are worth reading. Because of the excellent directions sent to attendees I had no difficulty finding 4 Quarters. It is breathtakingly serene. Upon arrival I started lugging my bags down to the dorm and people greeted me with hearty hellos as if they already knew me. One woman did in fact know me. We have a mutual friend. She has known my friend since her college days and I have known her at this end of her life for nearing a decade. Having a singular semi-familiar face was a Blessing.

I had left home 3 hours later than planned, but was lucky enough to claim the last bottom bunk. As it turned out this was the smallest camp yet and the dorm did not fill. Some 10 or so cancellations occurred last minute, many from the storms that had ripped through W VA and left destruction behind. I feel for them not only for what the storms wreaked, but for the camp that they missed.

In the bunk across from me was a woman who introduced herself as Watersong. She asked if I had picked a path (there are a group of differing intensives to choose from and you pick one and attend 3 hours/day all week and gain skills, experience, etc., according to the focus) and I told her I was taking the Pearl Pentacle path. I mentioned that it had peaked my interest from the first and nothing thus far had swayed me to another. She asked if I had considered the music path to which I impolitely guffawed.

I mentioned that I couldn’t sing. She scoffed and said that everyone could sing they had just been told from forever that they could not and the music path was partially a way to break down those barriers and also to teach how one to use sound in ritual. I murmured something polite and she said, "You should listen to the path presentations tonight. You do not have to choose until tomorrow and if you stay with Pearl that’s great, but just listen to the other paths." I promised I would and continued to unpack and then *poof* it was time to start camp.

*time reels forward*

Path presentations begin. The facilitators were funny and engaging and I was still on the Pearl path best I could see. The music path got up to present and it was Brook and Watersong. I can only describe it like this: my heart immediately went to them. It was as if a hand reached into my chest and pulled it straight to them and I knew I was taking the music path. I was stunned. I told myself, "Drums! Yay!" and I also told myself to listen to the Pearl presenters because I may get the same reaction. I did not get the same reaction. There was no denying which path I was meant to take and the thought terrified me.

(An interesting side note here: Prior to the Bardic circle where the different paths were presented a number of us were tapped to do the purification of folk as they arrived for the circle. When asked how we should do it both Mir (my one semi-familiar face) and I immediately said, "Tone,’" in unison. Funny, innit? *loves syncronicity*)

But I took the music path in spite of the marrow deep fear. I was inspired, opened and transformed by the skill of the facilitators, the support of the other members, and the opportunities the camp organizers had allowed this year by purposely having the differing paths participate in the nightly rituals. The patience, compassion, and open desire shown by the facilitators to see each of us succeed was overwhelming. Camp organizers and the RATs (ritual arc team) and the Ops team members – all attendees choose a path for the week and everyone appeared thoroughly engaged.

The Advanced Ritual Energetics class had the most people and we got to see their work at nightly rituals and they were amazing. I was fascinated by the responses of people in my affinity group* to their path class. One of the great things about the CUUPs group I co-led for years was the variety of ritual expression employed due to our purposefully diverse focus. For those experiences I am ever grateful. To me the things they were doing were wonderful and not surprising – to them it was new territory – so it was one of many places where I realized I brought a wholly different perspective to camp than many of the others. It was enriching for me and I hope for others.

In subsequent posts I will describe some of the rituals and some things from music path and general camp dynamics. I have no idea how many posts there will be or the time frame of them. It has taken almost 2 weeks for this due to the awful summer flu I brought home with me. I just hope I haven’t lost too many details to the fevers. 

Did I mention camp was amazing? It was. *grin*

*Affinity groups were selected by lots and as it was everyone was in the ritual energetics path except me. The group met once per afternoon for about an hour and you could bitch, praise, or simply check-in and go on your way. We designed a singular ritual for our group only, but more on that in another post.

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