Pagan Purge, Day 2

So, back to our story...

Day 2 - New Year's Eve.  Tim and McKay arrive bright and early Tuesday morning.  McKay is carrying a large paper mache head and a very large bag of beautiful brown and gray wool roving.  Horrified, I say "you aren't planning on burning all of that are you?"  Thankfully he replied no.  Lorna had kindly sent the bulk of it over to me for spinning, and just some bits and pieces were intended for the Mother Earth Goddess's dread locks (because what other hairstyle would have been appropriate, really?).  McKay got to work adding an additional layer of flesh toned tissue paper to the head (unfortunately, the only tissue paper we had in that shade was covered in poinsettias, but it seemed fitting for the Mother Earth Goddess), and then added the dread locks.

Here she is, drying in front of the fire.

Meanwhile, Tim managed to drag the skirt out of the barn by himself and attached a couple of ropes to help in the carrying it out to the burn pit.  I'm not sure how much the thing weighed, but 500 feet and some sore arms and shoulders later, the skirt had been deposited in place.

I ducked inside at that time to begin food prep for the evening while Nora, Tim and McKay made many more trips from the barn to the burn area with the bodice, the head and piles of wood to keep the fire going.  Within a few hours of their arrival, the Mother Earth Goddess stood ready for the evening's festivities.

The party kicked off around 7:30pm, and by 9:00 the group (there were about 16 of us) bundled up and headed outside into the 6 degree evening.  We all stood off to the side as McKay lit the materials inside.  Slowly, the skirt began to glow and orange light flooded out of the seams between the cardboard. 



We all seemed to gravitate naturally into a circle around the Goddess.  As planned, the cardboard began to burn and the flames slowly marched up the skirt, eventually spreading to the burlap.  One person at a time walked up to the opening and tossed in a representation of whatever they wanted to purge.  As the cardboard began to burn away, the carved symbols inside were gradually exposed.  They hung there, untouched by the flame for awhile, but eventually the heat and flame began to consume them. 



As they slowly caught fire, the sparklers would ignite sending off this wondrous, mini explosion of light.  



Eventually, the Goddess succumbed to the fire and crashed down into the pit. 

It was a once in a lifetime experience with a group of close friends.  The stars shone above in the cold, clear sky, people honked their horns as they drove by, and we all stood in a circle basking in the warmth of the fire and friendship. For that moment, it seemed as though all of the negativity in the world had indeed faded away.  Thank you Tim, McKay and Nora for turning this idea into reality (and thank you Jill for the photos of the actual burn event).