daffodils in England

One of the first things I noticed after I landed at Heathrow was the daffodils. Alongside the roads, bordering homes and sidewalks, and streaking across fields, the brilliance of their yellow pronounced the arrival of spring. Back in San Francisco, the spirits of seasons seemed to be in a battle, one day winter holding sway with gales of cold rain, the next the spring sun shining triumphantly. The tension between the two, along with the intensity of the eclipse, the construction below my home still in limbo, and my being the only non-disabled person in my household, made this a perfect time to dodge out of my beloved city. Hurling my body across the time and space tends to be tough on me, but as soon as I saw those daffodils, I knew that it would all be worth it, that I was in the right place.

The last few days I’ve stayed with a friend I’ve met thru teaching at witchcamp. She lives in Chesham, a small town/village in Buckinghamshire, which is literally the last tube stop out of London. I have an ongoing ambivalence towards the institution of witchcamp, but one thing I’m totally clear on is that I’ve met the most incredible people thru doing it. Everyone I’ll be visiting in these next two weeks I’ve met as a result of teaching camp, and every one of them is a gem. I’ve come to England to initiate two of them, to participate in rituals in which they will commit themselves to the Craft and claim the name of both priestess and witch. I’m ambivalent about the two traditions that became blended in me, Reclaiming and Feri, but I’m pleased that I’ve remained sure of doing these initiations.

Yesterday I stood in front of a beautiful statue at one of the museums in London that I visited. The statue was from Tibet and it was described as “a reassuring Buddha”. The incredible thing is, it really was. Before I even looked at the placard below it, I felt this strong sense of everything being just as it should be, a deep sense of calm in the midst of jet lagged over stimulation. Being in a different time zone, in a different country and culture, during an age of miracles (e-mails/cellphones/movies on the backs of airplane seats) is something this particular primate finds daunting to the nervous system. But something about that Buddha and the ever present daffodils I find profoundly reassuring. I’m glad I’m here.