A schedule conflict prevented us from
attending the August ritual at CedarLight Grove, so we wrote and
performed our own at home – the first one we had done ourselves.
We adapted one from the ADF website, so
that it would be suitable for our Anglo-Saxon hearth. We ensured that
it followed the ADF core order but kept it fairly simple.
Our offerings were: grain for Nerthus,
the Earth Mother; home-brewed beer and homemade banana bread for
Hama, the gatekeeper; pipe tobacco for the ancestors; grain and
banana bread for the land wights; and banana bread and beer for the
Shining Ones. Then we added special offerings and words for Frige,
Woden and a petition of Ing to help us succeed at gardening (as our
first effort failed miserably.)
Our omen was, we think, positive. We
used the Anglo-Saxon futhorc runes. In asking whether our offerings
were accepted, we turned up Ing – and since this was the first time
we had specifically spoken to him and it had come with a request, we
took that mean he wanted a bit more.
Asking what blessings the gods offer in
returned, we turned Eolh – elk-sedge, protection from outside
dangers.
And in asking what the gods wanted from
us, we turned Yr – a reminder to use our own skills and knowledge
as well as asking their help.
Overall, I much prefer the fellowship
and sense of shared worship at the Grove, but it was good to see how
it works in a more solitary setting. We honored the gods and deepened
our connection to them that much more.
