Come with me, my friends, on a journey to a place that brings joy, pain, wisdom, and love to the bones of the weary priestess.

Somewhere in the woods, could be any woods, but these are the Connecticut woods (and I make that distinction for anyone who has been lost in CT.. it sux). These woods are somehow magickal, like the ones in the movies where you can walk down the same path everyday, and then one day see a small cottage off in the shadows. yeah, they're like that. heh.

Five years.. i've been going to HHG. Five years is a long time for a Sagittarius to do anything... let alone stay with one group of people. And this year, was amazing. Yeah. i say that every year... forgive me, my 8th house is in Capricorn, I like it when a good thing lasts. Cuz it never seems to.

I was so emotionally raw by the time I arrived at HHG it's a wonder I didn't spend all five days curled up in the fetal position in my cabin. From dealing with the pain from my family's challenges, to dealing with working as a manager in a startup company (that I love but is bleeding me out every week)... it just seemed to keep on coming all the way to the last minutes before I left.

We (Nelly and I) arrived on Thursday afternoon and unloaded a truckload of stuff. Yeah, I packed Eliot (my F150) with alot of stuff. I've never been one to rough it. Then we sat back and started meeting people. But remember: Dark Moon Approacheth! We're meeting people, talking, sharing stories.. and it's DM. The time when normally we are holed up in the temple wrapped in blankets and shouting at black candles until all our pains are flushed out. No.. we're out meeting people and being open. Wow. That should have tipped me off to the changes in the energies that year.. but I just wrote it off to being so happy to be away.

Then we went out and met speakers.

This is the uber-cool thing about HHG.. you actually get to sit around and drink mead..wine..beer with published authors, elders, and leaders in the pagan and magickal community. And not light banter and idle chatter.. this is serious conversations that can go on for 30 minutes to an hour. These people are real, powerful, and there to share. This is like spiritual gold.

The opening ceremony at HHG is always really powerful. So this year was no exception. But the energies kept pulling at me... the fire circle, the drumming.. I did so little of that last year that I was shocked at how strong the energies were this year. Wow. Thursday night was the night I exorcised my demons. Having my IC in Leo means I basically filet myself on the altar of community love and connections. I give until I'm bled dry in the name of the desire to share a loving connection. It's not sexual thing, so don't go there.. it's a brotherly..sisterly love thing. And it's my thing. Luckily, one of my spiritual brothers has a big heart too..so when i said some not-so-loving things to him, he forgave me. See? I told you this community was cool.

HHG attracts real people. The people who run this retreat know what they're doing, and they bring in real speakers who have walked the walk.

Did you know that Janet Farrar has a wicked sense of humor and is an amazing story teller? *grin* Oh, yeah.. it's probably fairly easy to guess because she's travelled the world and experiences so much everyday.. but still... to sit and listen to her voice pitch and dance as she tells a story or a joke is a really cool experience.

Did you know that we've got an amazingly powerful collection of authors, teachers, and elders in New England that are all within a few hours drive? But I digress...

The rituals were powerful, not in the "knock you on your butt and make you float for hours" powerful.. but the "deeply woven into your bones so you will feel the after effects for months" kind of powerful stuff that I expect from Dark Moon energies.

I met this amazing teacher named Ivo Dominguez.. triple Sag.. just so grounded and loving in everything that he said and did that it blew me away. I'm the biggest cynic on the planet when it comes to meeting new people, especially teachers. I'm hellishly hard on teachers, because I believe that too many people do the "fake it until you make it" thing when they write a book. Ivo is the real deal, this guy knows so much that I wanted to shrink down and climb inside his head for a month until I could get a handle on how far his knowledge reaches. Of course, yes, I've got a Sun-Venus conjunction in Sag in my natal chart.. but I've met alot of Sagittarians that I can't stand. Ivo felt like a long lost teacher.. kinda like meeting Yoda only much more attractive! *laugh*

Trance prophesy ritual has been breathtakingly powerful both times I've been a part of it.

The journey to the moon temple -- this will be impacting my work for Months if not years. WHOA... and don't tell me that anyone ELSE can lead that meditation like Janet can.. because I've been in hundreds of meditations.. and I gotta give props to the woman who can just *craft it right* like breathing.

Laughed with Orion, he feeds my heart with his accent from home. I know he loves everyone, and just wants to clone himself so he can share more with more people. *smile* I've never heard anyone say anything negative about Orion, and how many people can you say THAT about in the pagan community? Not many.

Those currents just peeled me back, left me skinless but happy. I bled out pain and fear like someone had cut an artery. And what was left behind was a more honest woman.. and a much happier one too.

the softest, most amazing blessing of HHG are my spiritual family: Cori, whose smile could melt anyone's heart (and it usually does)... Courtney, whose spirit is totally unstoppable... Tish, who is just the quintessential water woman, she flows with everything but can spot B.S. at 20 paces... Sally, whose deep thoughts and deep feelings remind me that there is nothing to fear in the dark... Gina, whose sheer strength of will to overcome obstacles and pain makes me silent in wonder... Glen, whose connection to spirit makes him more authentic in his magick than people twice his age... Lilith, the powerful woman who reminds me that shame is a vice that no priestess needs... Stephen, the noble stallion who stands silently beside me when I'm at my worst and keeps me from harm...

These magickal people have helped me give birth to myself so many times that I feel like they know me better than my own family does.

So if you're curious.. and you want to see where I went and what it looks like, check out www.harvesthomegathering.com.

If you want to come with me next year, I won't be surprised. But remember, this is the place where we begin our journey inward.. so as wise Yoda said when Luke asked "What's in there?" ..

.. "Only what you take with you."