Introduction to Episode

Beltaine, the third fertility festival, and the Sabbat that ends the Time of Dawning and welcomes the Time of Light. Let's make an intentional change this Beltaine.

Podcast Episode Summary

Let’s make an intentional change this Beltaine. In this episode, I reflect on what Beltaine has meant and then I invite us to consider what it can mean for us as we move towards a future with changing climates.

I did not review the story of the God and the Goddess, but for you, dear reader/listener, this is the time where the Maiden becomes Mother, and the god grows. You can see these changes in our seasons as well, where we are in spring fever, planting our gardens or watching nature bloom and grow up around us. Blossoms are shedding and becoming leaves, summer is rapidly approaching. We are aging in our year.

A note on climate change. In this episode, I reflect on how fire season has started earlier than before. Our fire seasons have extended beyond just California and now last nearly the entire summer. Communities are in danger. Our ecosystems are in danger. It is up to us to co-create a future that works for all of us. So, this Beltaine, in this last fertility festival, let us work towards bringing seeds and new ideas of how we can co-create a future that will work for all of us.

Recommended Resources

Learish, Jessica. “What Is A Maypole? A History Of The Fertility Rite.” Bustle, May 1, 2016. https://www.bustle.com/articles/157383-what-is-a-maypole-and-how-is-it-used-a-brief-history-of-this-pagan-fertility.

Starhawk, Diane Baker, and Anne Hill. Circle Round: Raising Children in Goddess Traditions. New York, NY: Bantam Books, 1998.

Wigington, Patti. “A Brief History of the Maypole Dance.” Learn Religions, June 25, 2019. https://www.learnreligions.com/history-of-the-maypole-2561629.

For more information about Michelle, Balance Shared, events, and projects, please visit www.michellelasley.com.