Danu, Danu, Danu
Three times round we go
Moonwise in our circle
Dancing with the flow.
Danu, Danu, Danu
Three times round we spin
To waken all the Sidhe
In the mound within
Danu, Danu, Danu
Three times round we dance
Lead us to the Otherworld
Spinning in our trance.
Danu, Danu, Danu
Three times round we sing
Happy all together
In the Faerie Ring.
Danu, Danu, Danu
Flowing rivers and streams
We are bathed in your love.
Danu, Danu, Danu
Your Body, this beautiful Land
We suckle at your Breast.
Mother of All
Redeemer of Souls
Source of all that is Holy.
Bring peace to all who suffer.
Bring health to all who are ill.
Bless us this morning as we arise.
Bless us with food and drink
A warm hearth for all
And shelter from the storms.
We offer you sweet milk
Our bread and fruit, gifts for you
With grateful hearts, we share.
Danu, Danu, Danu
Flowing rivers and streams
We are bathed in your love.
Danu, Danu, Danu
Your Body, this beautiful Land
We suckle at your Breast.
Mother of All
Redeemer of Souls
Source of all that is Holy.
At the highest point on the tree, you stretch, reaching for the sun.
Your pink petals elegant in their grace, you stand alone.
Bravest of all, for leaves have yet to come to offer shade
Branches bare except for furry buds that will soon
follow in imitation of your daring first move.
Intrepid flower of Spring, I feel like you in my yearning for the Sun!
Here is the child of Spring reaching out.
Her happy heart light and gay.
Her bright colors sparking in the sunlight.
Poppy, you show how I feel
As I sense the birthing of life around me.
Embraced in newness,
I dance with joy and excitement.
Cardea, in your starry castle at the hinge of the universe, we call to you and your son, Eurus who echoes memories of new growth and springtime. You who looks forward and backward in time, blow your sweet breath upon us. Allow us to feel you on our skin, the gentle wind blowing on our faces as we open to you in the morning.
Cardea, in your starry castle at the hinge of the universe, we call to you and your son, Notus who speaks to us of the brilliance and warmth of the summer Sun. Remind us of the joy of children who skip along, hand in hand, swinging their arms, singing songs of summer.
Cardea, in your starry castle at the hinge of the universe, we call to you and your son, Zephyrus who sings of the Cauldron of Rebirth. Open the door to allow that which is no longer useful to us to leave. At the same time open us to the flow of life as we birth newness into each day.
Cardea, in your starry castle at the hinge of the universe, we call to you and your son, Boreas who whispers to us of Life-in-Death, and hints at the seeds within the fallen fruit. Ground us in the knowledge that we shall always find sustenance and renewal in the nurturing life on Earth.
Cardea, Mother, whose power is to open what is shut and to shut what is open, remind us always to listen to the winds.
A soft breeze gently lifts a leaf to float above the grass.
I feel the calm and peace of the breeze.
A light rain has washed clean any lingering disturbance in my space.
I am refreshed and renewed.
The sun lifts her face into the sky bringing warmth and light to my world.
She awakens all in her light of a new day.
Birds begin their songs and my heart lifts in the joy of the moment.
I breathe in the fresh morning air and know the calm of peace.
Bare Tree, here in the cold of winter,
I stand here and gaze at your branches.
You are so adaptable to the changing seasons.
Each year, as the days begin to shorten,
you prepare yourself for the coming cold,
your leaves turning color and then dropping to the ground.
Those leaves, so full of moisture
would freeze with the cold
and cause you grievous harm.
Your branches would grow heavy with ice and snow.
In your bareness, Tree, you show us your wisdom.
In this time of cold,
You are preparing for future growth.
You are readying yourself for spring
When you will send out new leaves and flowers
and begin the growth cycle again.
Would that I could feel this cycle more within my own core
and know when it is time to be still and to rest,
when to pull back and listen,
when to be still and stand, rooted in the ground,
when to drop what could harm me
and when to go within to ready myself for the new.
Thank you, Bare Tree, for showing me this lesson
Thank you for the gift of your knowledge.
Hadaig, you are so smart
With your large cawing voice,
Unique and patient in flight
Your compact body with
long-legs and thick neck
a heavy, straight bill.
with broad, rounded wings
and wing-tip feathers that spread like fingers
I am amazed at your fine body
you have not a speck of any other color –
all black, even your legs and bill.
you could teach us a lot about being with others
living in large flocks, sometimes of millions
how do you do that
when I have trouble with only a few?
you are inquisitive
and very mischievous, my friend
and so good at solving problems
I just don’t know how you do it
eating almost anything
… even robbing chicks from nests
Oh, bold Hadaig,
you are so aggressive
you often chase away hawks
I know you must surely be full of yourself!
I see you In fields, open woodlands, and forests
on lawns and in parking lots
you raid garbage cans and
pick over what we throw out
you are a great teacher
of cleverness and versatility
It is no wonder you are beloved of the Goddess
Jodi outside, tough as nails
Brightly colored tattoed skin
Jodi inside, soft as silk
Never nurtured by mother’s milk.
Hurt by life, this child of pain
Hurt by those whose love she’d gain.
Battered, beaten, bruised and torn
By those around her she was scorned.
She tries her best to be fierce
Her toughness hides her fragile self.
Inside her soul, the gentle fawn
Dares not be another’s pawn.
With her friends she seeks to grow
Goddess led, she now knows
That love will heal the hurt and pain
And through knowledge she will gain.
She must start her life again
As if a child in school, begin.
She must read to get ahead
And learn the rules as she’s led.
Someday she’ll see she has no need
For smoke and stuff to hide her pain
The Lady wants her pure and clean
On the Goddess she can lean.
It is not easy to learn to love
When love’s not taught.
It’s not easy to hide the dread
When lovers find new paths to tread.
I hope her teachers guide her well
And teach by doing what they say
Living smart and choosing right
Showing that the path is bright.
When Jodi learns to love herself
Then love from others will be a boon
Not a need to fill a hole
But fluffy frosting for the soul.
Deanne (who knows when – many years ago)
Holly
Holly trees are rarely allowed to grow to their full height of sixty-five feet and are instead trimmed down as hedges or ornamental bushes.
I am a Holly Tree. Many of us are Holly Trees. As strong women – women whose voices want to shout out to the world – women who have a really hard time being silent in the face of injustice – women who rebel at being the fairer sex – rebel at being trimmed down or at being ornamental bushes!
From early in life the process of being “trimmed down” begins. We are silenced – shushed – trained to be “good little girls” and not assertive – bold or daring!
I am a Holly Tree who has not been trimmed – a Holly Tree who has grown to her full height – a Holly Tree with full spiky leaves – sharp barbs – rich color – full and robust berries – a battle waging spear – who will not – can not – be silent in the face of injustice. A Holly Tree – strong and tall in service to Goddess!
Deanne