This is a photograph of my painting: Holy well and Sacred Flame. It is an abstract representation of the Goddess from whom I get my name, Bríd, goddess of fire and water, poetry, healing and smithcraft. We celebrate her feast on 2nd February as the first lambs are born to suckle in ewes milk from which we get the ancient name of her feast Imbolc - pronounced imolg.

Here is an invocation which I wrote some years ago and use on this day:

Invocation to Bríd

by Bríd Wyldearth 2007

Bríd, Brighde, Brigid, Birgit, Brigita, Brigantia

Woman of the Sacred Flame

Woman of the Deep Well

Gone is the time of little sun, ruled by the fierce, one-eyed hag, Cailleach

In a chariot, drawn by swans, she rode to the Sacred Isle of Youth

She drank from the spring in the holy oak grove

and transformed into youthful, beauteous Bríd

like the snake, emerging from her winter lair,

sloughing her skin, renewed again

re last post

I am new to this Blog buisness so please forgive me for omitting to add that the last post was copied from Oak on her blog branchesup.blogspot.com . Thank you Oak for this invitation. Last year we held a minifestival on wimminsmoondrum@yahoogroups.com because I did not yet have a blog or know how to access them with dial up connection from a windows 98 machine! A Happy and poetic Imbolc
to anyone who reads this!

Invitation to the third annual Imbolc cyberspace poetry reading

Well, Anne Hill asked if we were going to do this again, and I say YES! Feel free to copy the following to your blog and spread the word. Let poetry bless the blogosphere once again!

WHAT: A Bloggers (Silent) Poetry Reading

WHEN: Anytime February 2, 2008

WHERE: Your blog

WHY: To celebrate the Feast of Brigid, aka Groundhog Day

HOW: Select a poem you like - by a favorite poet or one of your own - to post February 2nd.

RSVP: If you plan to publish, feel free to leave a comment and link on this post. Last year when the call went out there was more poetry in cyberspace than I could keep track of. So, link to whoever you hear about this from and a mighty web of poetry will be spun.

Feel free to pass this invitation on to any and all bloggers.

Thank you, Reya, for beginning what is now an annual event.

Imbolc Full Moon

IMBOLC FULL MOON 22 JANUARY2008

I lay on my couch in front of my wood burning stove and started to drum on my large moon like drum. She sang with the heat of the fire and I filled my charkas with firey earth energy and then icy moon light through thick clouds and sheltering roof.

I journeyed to my clan lodge and was welcomed with hugs and love. I felt that I belonged. I was told that when we ask for something we have to be prepared for the possibility that the answer might be “No”. It was necessary to start the wimminsmoondrum for my own solitary journey. The dream of community and wimmins drumming shaking the earth may only belong to dream reality. I might never have met the wimmin in my clan and moon lodge had I not started the moon drum. My grandmother noticed that my singing voice was stronger and more in tune. I was given a wolf mask to wear – to feel how it was to be wolf and told to read up about wolves – maybe it is my lot to be a lone and grumpy wolf, longing for clan….

We went together as wolf clan to the moon lodge and I went to the centre of the labyrinth and howled. Bev was there and gave me a big hug – said that she would not have missed it. She noticed that I had her lippy in my coat pocket.

I sent blessings to each woman in the drum and came back, exhausted into my living room…. And kissed my beautiful drum.