Just a really short post from me today because I am feeling really happy and elated! I went to my first coven meeting today for Beltane and it made me feel a part of the pagan community for the first time!
The picture at the top of this post is my Beltane ritual altar – covered in flowers, offerings of honey, candles in corresponding colours and full of good intentions and requests for the new energies of May. I’ve been practicing in solitude for the last few years and have been celebrating the sabbats alone – but for the first time I decided to go to two meet ups for Beltane. The first was a lovely little garden party with a local group who I will definitely go to meet again – they were so friendly and welcoming.
The second was a full ritual, organised by the Coven of Gaia – my local coven who also runs the witch festival that I’ve attended the last few years. I’ve had such an incredible time during the last few that I finally plucked up the courage to attend a smaller gathering.
I am so glad that I did! The ritual began with creating a circle, travelling between the flames, crowning the May Queen and May King, tying them together in ceremony by moving around the circle with ribbons to signify the unifying of the goddess and the god, welcoming the fertile and affluent summer. We then jumped over the fire (candles, not the main bonfire) and enjoyed sharing a drink and food together.
Overall it was a fantastic experience and I am hoping it’s one I will share many more times in the future. I’ve been looking for people to share my path with and to learn from and I feel like I’ve found some! I look forward to the festival next week at the same place – it’s a beautiful location!
