Awakened
Woman Event of the Month
by Stephanie
Hiller
The 10th Northern
California Women's Herbal Symposium, held in
Laytonville, California, in Mendocino County,
during the last two weekends in May, was sold
out this year. I managed to catch one day of the
first weekend, and I feel very privileged to
have done so.
The event is held at the
Black Oak Ranch where Wavy Gravy runs his Camp
Winarainbow, a wonderful children's camp for
young clowns. I suppose he owns the land as
well. In addition to being absolutely gorgeous,
the ranch is extremely well designed for this
kind of gathering. In the central meeting area,
large teepees impressive in their stately
grandeur form a circle along the outer edge; in
the center is the fire circle, marked by a wide
ring of logs, and an inner circle, where the
fire is actually laid. The setting provides a
strong focus for the weekend's events. Camp
sites are located away from the central area,
many of them right by the creek! A little
further off runs the river, just deep enough for
a nice swim.
The Symposium features a
great selection of workshops on herbalism and
other topics related to plants and healing, all
taught by accomplished practitioners and
scholars. The weekend I was there, offerings
included workshops on caring for the dying,
living with diabetes, treating depression,
taking care of the lungs, and many others, as
well as the usual herb walks and plant
identification classes.
Food is catered and
prepared on site, in a charming little cottage
kitchen. It's excellent vegetarian fare; they
even offer a wheat-free option! Everyone who
attends is asked to help out in the kitchen.
They do a marvelous job.
As everyone assembled
for dinner, I was struck by the harmony and
order of the surrounding scene.Three hundred
women, and many children and babies, happily
chatting and eating. No screaming babies! Not a
drop of garbage or a hint of chaos, just
beautiful women comfortable in their bodies
talking with one another in the glow of the late
afternoon sunshine. It was a vision of a
possible future. I was reminded of a book I've
just read, Herland, by Charlotte Perkins
Gilman, a charming utopian novel written in
1925, describing a nation of women who give
birth to daughters parthenogenically and develop
a highly evolved society. The story is told from
the point of view of a man who happens upon this
isolated society with two of his friends. Their
patriarchal minds are blown! The narrator was a
gentleman, but one of the men was not… And
what if some local rednecks wandered in to this
beautiful gathering, I wondered? "Is it the
absence of men that makes this weekend so
wonderful?" asked a friend, eyes twinkling.
Maybe so. But if men do not have the opportunity
to experience such celestial gatherings, won't
they want to bomb the barricades? (I hear that
two men have asked Sarah Alexander and Terri
Jensen, the Symposium organizers, to help them
create a similar symposium for men! That'll
help. . .)
It was the night of the
big maiden/crone ritual, which I cannot really
describe here. You just have to be there to feel
the power of mutual recognition that took place
as we raised arms to form a long serpentine
tunnel, singing the same beautiful song that we
sang in our own group for our daughters' coming
of age"
Don't
let anyone ever tell you
That you're anything less than
beautiful
Don't let anyone ever tell you
You are less than whole!
How could anyone fail to notice
That your loving is a miracle?
How deeply you're connected to my
soul.
Everyone passed through
this tunnel, old and young, even little toddlers
and babes in arms. The intense sense of
recognition and release that we all experienced
is indescribable, especially when the young
maidens passed under our arms. Imagine the
difference in young girls' lives as they grow
up, expecting to be welcomed into womanhood in
this way! Isn't that what every young girl
deserves?
It was a euphoric
experience, and all I could think was how this
kind of gathering shows that we've already laid
the foundation for the new culture. Here it is
&endash; if only for a weekend. Gathering with
other women in this way recharges and refreshes
us deeply, strenthening and supporting us as we
return to the work of the world. As we become
more harmonious and adept at self-organization,
we create models for a liveable world -- models
which hearken back to the ancient women's
cultures and the earth-based native
peoples.
I recommend the
symposium to all who are interested in learning
about plants and healing in a circle of women.
If you'd like to go next year, save this page:
and be sure to register early. See you
there!
Northern
California Women's Herbal
Symposium, P. O.
Box, Box 599, Sebastopol, CA 95472. Cost:
$150-$225 sliding scale for one week-end and
$300-$450 for both. Young women 12-20 and elders
over 60 can attend for $50 if they need the
price reduction.
Review
an event!
We can't be everywhere
at once. Can you help us share news of women's
gatherings? If you attend a wonderful event this
summer, tell us about it!
A few paragraphs will
do. Be sure to include cost and reservation
information, in case women want to keep it in
mind for next year. If you weren't satisfied,
tell us that, too, so that we can spend our
money somewhere else. The best event will be our
Event of the Month, but we'll publish the others
too.
Send your review to the
editor@awakenedwoman.com
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