History is repeating itself
Lessons from Lithuania
October is here, and while I find it imprudent to completely ignore the current events, I promised myself to step away from the relentless doom and gloom for a month. Instead, I’m using this time to breathe and reflect before the commercial holiday seasons begin. For me, this means connecting with the seasonal shift and the beautiful ways different cultures honor it.
A Last Look at Summer
I would be remiss not to share my visit to Kernave, Lithuania earlier this year. Click here to see beautiful pictures of their Autumn Equinox celebration on September 20, 2021. We even spent the night in a B&B art museum loaded with eclectic yard art.
A few weeks later, I visited friends in Portsmouth, NH, and we drove up the coast to Ogunquit. We expected lush leaves and late flowers, but instead, we saw dried-up vegetation from the summer drought. The leaf-peeping season seems to be getting later each year, a stark reminder of our changing climate.
Walking the Thin Places
October is a time for the late harvest and preserving crops for the dark winter. For me, it is also a time to reflect on the many people in my life who passed on to the next realm in September.
One of my favorite things to do when I lived in NH was to walk the Marginal Way. I would sit on one of the memorial benches and experience a place where the veil is thinnest.
You may have experienced one of these real places. As Carrie Jane Knowles shared about her experience in a French forest, “The ancient pagan Celts, and, later, Christians used the term, thin places, to describe locations... where the veil between this world and another world is thin, thereby bringing us closer to that other world.”
Ancient Traditions of Remembrance
This concept is deeply embedded in history. On Vėlinės, Lithuanians—the land of the last proud pagans—honored the dead on October 31st, a tradition later absorbed by Catholicism into All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day.
The Norse also celebrated Winter nights on October 31st. They believed the great division between the worlds was diminished, allowing spirits of the dead and yet-to-be-born to walk among the living. The dead could return to their homes, and food and entertainment were provided in their honor.
This is a powerful way to be one with the past, present, and future of your tribe.
Finding Hope and Connection
As we work our way through October, let’s remember Jane Goodall who said, “The greatest danger to our future is apathy. But can we overcome apathy? Yes, but only if we have hope.” In her last words she said, “ I believe, and now I know, that there is life beyond death. That consciousness survives.”
I encourage you to think about who you would like to see this Vėlinės. I often visit Holy Redeemer Cemetery where all my immediate relatives are buried and yell, “Party at my house!” Instead of handing out candy, I light a fire in my chiminea, raise a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, and remember the dead.
I hope you learned some new lessons from Lithuania, land of the last proud pagans. If you want to see more pictures and discover some fun facts about the Autumnal Equinox, read about the Baltic Unity Festival.
A Note for the Nordic Pagans Among Us
I salute the Nordic pagans in the readership today! You Beardos can sign up for special forces; just remember that if you want to keep your mustache, it must be neatly trimmed, as in the example below.
