Saturday, October 5, 2013

Children of the Boreal Michaelmas Celebration


Last week we celebrated Michaelmas with our home-school cooperative; Children of the Boreal. The day was filled with light, beauty and friends. After hearing a story, we headed out on a treasure hunt where each stop included tasks for the children followed by a treasure. The treasures included capes (silks) of light, Brooks range quartz, water color painted crowns, Birch bark medallions and finally, when we walk a spiral singing Spiraling into the Center, the kids each get a candle to light when we get to the fire pit. The walk ends at a fire pit where there is a fire and a feast laid out. This is our third Michaelmas. I hope that someday when I look back on these celebrations, I can keep them from blurring all together. I'm going to include in italics the songs we song at different times of our walk. They are songs that we sing weekly in the fall, on our own while we do farm chores, as well as on our Home-school cooperative days. You might be able to google them. Some of them are in the Enki as well as Christopherus curriculum.


Birch Woman
Leaves turn from green to golden to brown
As Birch Woman dons her Autumn gown
Cool breezes blow by to help her let go
And she drops her gown to the floor below
Bare arms reach expectantly to the sky
And she smiles to herself as the geese fly by
Her heart tells her she won't wait long for snow
With a deep sigh of peace she lets her sap flow slow
 


Indian Harvest
Mother Earth, to you we're singing
Listen to our song!
Thanks for golden harvest bringing,
Listen as we sing to you!

Sing to you! Sing to you!
Songs of rain and sunshine true!

On the trail where are we going,
Ever will we sing!
When the winter comes with snowing,
Still our hearts will sing to you!

Sing to you! Sing to you!
Songs of rain and sunshine true!
 


The Birch bark medallions turned out beautiful. We had one parent stay up late one night cutting all of the Birch circles out punching holes in them. Then the children six and under gathered leaves and were able to brush the medallions with Mod Podge, place the leaves on the circles and paint over the tops again with the Mod Podge. Another parent took them home and made sure they all turned out. I brought locally made and naturally dyed yarn and helped lead finger knitting with the kids and parents over a couple weeks and then finished assembling them. I think these would make beautiful tree ornaments as well.


Land of the Silver Birch
Land of the silver birch
Home of the beaver
Land where the wild moose
Wanders at will
Refrain:
Blue lake and rocky shore
I will return once more
He yana ho yana he yana ho.
 
Swift as a silver fish
My canoe of birch bark
By mighty waters
carried afar
Refrain
 
Down by the blue lake
I'll build my wigwam
Under the shining stars
I'll sing my song
Refrain
 




Spiraling into the Center
Spiraling into the center
the center of the shield
Spiraling into the center
the center of the shield




I am the weaver, I am the woven one
I am the dreamer, I am the dream
I am the weaver, I am the woven one
I am the dreamer, I am the dream


There is a woman who weaves the night sky
she how she spins see how her fingers fly
she is within us beginning to end
she is the weaver and we are the web
 

 She changes everything she touches and
everything she touches changes
She changes everything she touches and
everything she touches changes


Change us, touch us, touch us, change us
Change us, touch us, touch us, change us
 



2 comments:

WILDROOTSWOMAN said...

E...I just love you and your family! I had so much fun on the walk back with Avery and a couple of the other girls!

Rachel~At the Butterfly Ball said...

What a lovely way to celebrate! You pictures make me wish we were there too! The children all look adorable in their capes and medallions.