We had a new site for Beltaine! Jeremy Sandford
introduced us to Tommy of the Oakery and Tommy showed us his pinetum (like an
arboretum only mainly with pines, lots of different pines). It was a magic site.
The pinetum was only one of 3 or 4 fields that Tommy showed us, but when Benson
and I went to see it, we knew we were going to be there. There was such a strong
energy. If anyone remembers the Bromyard site, it was like the lower meadow
there.
Very special. And there was a huge and beautiful old oak at the end of the pines. The oldest living oak in the land so Tommy said. Later someone at camp told me it was actually the 16th oldest ~ that was more believable and still pretty amazing!
There were loads of problems!
At the top of the site was a dead vehicle museum.
These were no ordinary Ford Fiestas: there were tractors and lorries, a haywain,
a combine harvester and even a boat!
There were piles of metal bits and piles of sleepers, piles of wooden slat boxes
and piles of things you didn’t even want to investigate. It even included
a winnowing machine ~ one of those with a double row of circles of thin spikes,
to say nothing of all the junk that accumulates around dead vehicles.
Dangerous?
Just a touch. And the children’s camp was going to be there too??? There was no water supply. The nearest tap was about a quarter of a mile away.
There had been people living among the dead vehicles and there was a fire pit and lots of rubbish. There were people still living at the far end of the meadow.
Well, Tommy said he’d sort out the vehicles
~ and there was this spring. He’s been meaning to have the water pumped
up from this spring to his house, so he could have it come via the top of the
meadow. No problem!
And he’d get Simon, one of those who had been living there, to move his
caravan and his rubbish.
We went to see the people at the end of the meadow and got on well with them. They were quite interested in having the camp there. We would consider our site to end before their bit of the meadow.
We’d fallen in love with the meadow.
The farmer said he could clear most of the vehicles and Benson reckoned he could
get SOMEONE (such a useful, willing person) to fence off the rest. And next
to the meadow was a lovely big field where the children’s camp could happen.
So we went for it.
From time to time throughout the winter season someone (them again!) would go up to the site and gently remind the farmer that he was going to clear the vehicles away. Nothing changed. The display was untouched and there was still no water . . . So when I went up again at Easter, saw Tommy in the yard and asked about the vehicles, I was not surprised to hear that he hadn’t gotten around to clearing them yet.
Only five weeks to go ~ I was starting to get worried.
We went to up to the fields anyway ~ and WOW! He had done it!
The site wasn’t exactly clear, but most of the big vehicles had gone. Phew!
And what a joker. . .
Next crisis was Benson.
Benson and I were co-ordinating together ~ but suddenly the Hanratty court case came up and Benson had to be in London.
Frantically I put out for support.
At the Winter Working Group I enlisted specific people to be there early and get the loos and the gate dome up.
I reckoned everything else would fall into place.
Benson and I did a site plan before he had to leave ~ and off he went.
When we moved onto site we immediately started the magic hat food circle by Brenda’s fire. That was important because we immediately felt like family.
Just as well, because there were other crises.
The Rothdean driver who delivered the trailer didn’t want to take it up
to the field because the track was difficult. He’d arrived early and had
talked to Tommy. Nothing’s a problem for Tommy. He’d have it moved
up the next day. But it was a problem.
The air brakes were stuck on and no one could shift it. Eventually we paid a
mate of Tommy’s £20 (half of what he was originally asking) to pump up
the brakes and move the trailer that last 300-400 yards.
Meanwhile George had arrived. In spite of
notices saying no entrance, no vehicles, and emergency access only, George tried
to drive in over the not-quite-finished bridge, into the wettest part of the
field. He sank, of course.
It was an emergency he said.
His engine was about to conk out.
Well, towing George along the track would have been child’s play compared
to getting George out of the mud which was halfway up his wheels. As an added
bonus, he was blocking the exit of the couple who lived in that part of the
field and who had to get out for an MOT the next morning.
I was so angry with George I could hardly speak, but I have to say that once
he got parked up at the top (no George, you are NOT going to stay here where
you got stuck), George was worth his weight I gold. Brenda and Gretel gave me
moral and personal support and George was always thinking on the physical level.
It was full moon on the Friday night (actually Saturday and 4:01 BST). We opened that evening with an amazing magical ceremony ~ and Benson arrived back just in time. We blessed the bounds! We didn’t want to go beating them! We also honoured the directions and the ancient oak and on our way round the site we visited and appreciated all the beautiful old and rare trees.
The site plan was based on a double helix with two natural tree circles. After honouring the site, we gathered first in the fire circle and then in the air circle where we honoured the elements. As the ceremony progressed the weather drew in. Heavy rain had been forecast and had been threatening all day so we were lucky to have escaped it so far. But as Mandy opened the cauldron to catch the full moon, it started.
There was just a glimpse of moon, scurrying between the clouds and Mandy
just managed to catch her before the heavens opened!
Rapidly we closed the elements and the ceremony ended when the fat lady (me)
put the lid on it (the cauldron)!
It proceeded to rain with little respite for three
days.
The whole of the site was vulnerable to rain, except the top of the field where
all the dead vehicles had been.
We had made the conscious decision not to put the café marquee there because
we wanted the heart of our camp to be in the magical energy of the glade and
near the double helix.
Now we had to suffer the consequences.
Gales blew and rain lashed.
Twice we had hail.
George and Johnny were out heroes during this time, rescuing the marquee and organising pallets to walk on so we could at least use it for meals. Eventually it became too bad even for that. But by that time the rain had stopped and we were able to have our food circles outside the marquee where there was still some grass.
In spite of all the water around us, we still didn’t have piped water on site. We were still filling water containers from the farmyard gate. Not until Monday aster we opened did water flow out of our taps!
A great communal spirit developed as we supported each other in survival mode. I had decided to try out a Noon Gathering. Terry was another hero.
Beltaine Eve celebrations were organised by Lin and Chris, Max and Lisa and others from their camp.
Working with Lin, the children had built a spiral labyrinth which we all walked and Max led a beautiful ceremony where we consciously dedicated magical energy for the year to come and which culminated in the jumping of the Beltaine fire. (Several smaller fires had been set for this purpose as the main fire was located in the middle of a mud bath).
On Mayday, while the sun shone, we danced the maypole with the usual chaos and later on in the week we celebrated the astronomical Beltaine (15 degrees Taurus) with a picnic on the greensward.
By the time we had celebrated the end of the camp with a closing ceremony, we felt we had certainly done our best to honour the fourth turning point of the year and to draw in good energy for the rest of the season!
Lyn
Celebration of the Hag
I’d like to thank everyone who came to my 60th last year.
Thanks, first for coming to Hatfield Court (on a stormy night), second for the
amazing pressies and third for making it a night to remember and remember forever.
Love you all,
Lyn
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