May in the Galaxy! Magic, Mysticism and Tantra, or: You had to be there.

Hi Galaxy!

This has officially turned into more of a mid-month email for May, partially because I was having an amazing time at Red Clover Ranch in the first weekend of May, and I’ve been playing catch-up ever since.

That weekend at Red Clover was a retreat hosted for retreat leaders by Annie Coleman, who is the “Head Wrangler” over at Red Clover, and one of the smartest, most creative, and genuinely awesome women I know. It was a bit anarchic and DIY, in the best way, because no one was really “in charge” of the weekend, but each of us had a skill to share, and so we did, in turn. There was a little intentional gathering, breathing, meditating, sound healing (by the amazing Parisa, of course), SINGING (my favorite), and yoga (provided by me). Dani, who is one of the most brilliant culinarians I’ve ever known, kept us well-fed with food mostly grown locally, and it was awesome to be able to spend time with these other women, who I didn’t really know prior to arriving, and to also spend time with the ladies who keep things humming and tend the sacred space at Red Clover.

A friend of mine texted me over the weekend, because he was going to an Indian classical music concert that I was sad to miss. His text came through right when I was upstairs in the barn loft with this amazing group of women, on our last night there. We were playing guitar, singing and figuring out harmonies and learning new songs, laughing at inside jokes, and getting to that moment on retreat where you really start to know each other, settle in, and connect.

The night before had been Beltane, which marks the beginning of summer in the Pagan Wheel of the Year, as well as a full moon. One of our retreat leaders led a fire ceremony, and no joke… a cat appeared at the fire and walked in and around everyone’s legs, just like you’d expect any witch’s familiar to do. The day before we had walked through the apple orchard on the property and found morels growing everywhere among the trees.

So anyway, this text came through and I was thinking,” How do I explain what I’m doing while I’m missing what seems to be an amazing concert? How do I explain how it feels so powerful and important to be here, with these other magical women? How can a few letters sent through the ether to someone else’s screen contain all the gratitude I feel to be in the company of these literal witches?”

You just had to be there. That’s what I kept thinking.

And that’s why we celebrate the magic of the mystics this month. Mysticism has as its root the Greek word μύω, which translates roughly into “I conceal.” This might refer to the secret initiations and ceremonies of various deity cults, like the Eleusinian Mysteries. It also might imply this idea of “eyes closed and mouth closed,” where the mystic is experiencing a oneness of experience with divinity that transcends the realities of daily existence.

This votive plaque is thought to depict some of the rituals of the Eleusinian Mysteries - one of the most famous mystical cults in history (devoted to Demeter and Persephone).

At any rate, I was deeply feeling the mystic energy of Red Clover Ranch, these powerful women who gathered over the weekend, the full moon, the music of the guitars and voices, and I knew that there was no explaining everything I was thinking and feeling.

As my husband likes to say, as a joke, “If I have to explain it to you, you won’t understand it nohow.”

So I texted back: “Wow, that looks amazing. I was singing harmony all night with a bunch of witches over here in the Driftless.”

It was pretty perfect in how ridiculous it was, and how ridiculously inadequate it was to describe how I felt.

And I’ll say… that’s pretty close to how I feel after a really good yoga class. It’s also how I feel when I know that I taught a really good yoga class. I can’t really describe what was great about it, but I just know.

You just had to be there.

Here’s what I like to imagine was the soundtrack to the Eleusinian Mysteries: