{"id":505,"date":"2009-08-22T21:02:00","date_gmt":"2009-08-22T21:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2009\/08\/gorsedd-afterglow\/"},"modified":"2009-08-22T21:02:00","modified_gmt":"2009-08-22T21:02:00","slug":"gorsedd-afterglow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/johnbeckett\/2009\/08\/gorsedd-afterglow.html","title":{"rendered":"Gorsedd Afterglow"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a>The Danu Portal, with gate, elemental altars, spiral labyrinth, and Brigid\u2019s Cross. Some of the Grove Pavilion tents are in the background.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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Last year I attended a Saturday workshop on meditation, led by a Buddhist<\/a> monk. We practiced several different types of postures and meditations, all with an emphasis on mindfulness. It was helpful, but what I remember most of all was Br. ChiSing\u2019s<\/a> final recommendations: practice alone daily, practice with a group weekly, and attend a retreat or seminar quarterly.\n<\/div>\n
Daily practice and weekly meetings have always been a part of my religious life. Or at least, it was what I knew I should do even if I didn\u2019t always do it. But the idea of regular retreats and seminars was new to me. The Baptist church I grew up in would do revivals every year or two, but they were geared more toward scaring \u201csinners\u201d into \u201cgetting saved\u201d rather than actually reviving the congregation. All I knew was that I had to go to church every night for a week and miss all my favorite TV shows.<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

The Druid Gorsedd was a wonderful experience for all the reasons I\u2019ve written about before. Three weeks later, though, I\u2019m starting to see the long-term benefits. My nightly meditation and prayer has gotten deeper, and a bit longer. I\u2019m back to working through one OBOD lesson<\/a> every week \u2013 at this rate I\u2019ll finish the Druid grade material before the end of the year<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

More importantly, for the first time in a long time (maybe ever) I feel like I\u2019m not just \u201con the right path,\u201d but I\u2019m doing and learning what I need to do and learn and I\u2019m progressing at the rate I\u2019m supposed to progress.\n<\/div>\n
Some of that comes from the workshops, rituals, and conversations. But I think most of it comes from a weekend of immersion in contemporary Druid culture and practice, and being with people who are doing what I want to do. I\u2019ve seen what\u2019s possible, and I see how I can have a place in it. I don\u2019t need another degree and I don\u2019t need a career change. I just need to keep practicing, keep learning, and say \u201cyes\u201d when the Goddess and God present me with opportunities.<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Danu Portal, with gate, elemental altars, spiral labyrinth, and Brigid\u2019s Cross. Some of the Grove Pavilion tents are in the background. Last year I attended a Saturday workshop on meditation, led by a Buddhist monk. We practiced several different types of postures and meditations, all with an emphasis on mindfulness. It was helpful, but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1129,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-505","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nGorsedd Afterglow<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Danu Portal, with gate, elemental altars, spiral labyrinth, and Brigid's Cross. 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