{"id":328,"date":"2017-07-25T23:43:52","date_gmt":"2017-07-26T04:43:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/sadovskypluto\/?p=328"},"modified":"2017-07-26T16:40:22","modified_gmt":"2017-07-26T21:40:22","slug":"scythes-and-surrender","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/sadovskypluto\/2017\/07\/scythes-and-surrender\/","title":{"rendered":"Scythes and Surrender"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

This summer has been an exercise in surrender.\u00a0 In May, I took my children to visit their father for six weeks.\u00a0 This was the longest period of time they had been away from home, and the transfer was not peaceful.\u00a0 He has moved to an area in Appalachia that I have loved for many years.\u00a0 I used to run those hills as a child, visiting family and going on road trips with my mom and brother.\u00a0 Used to own some homes up there as well.\u00a0 Going to that area and feeling unwelcome was a bitter day.\u00a0 Although I have good friends and strong ties there,\u00a0 driving away felt like a knife in my heart.\u00a0 Like giving up my claim, on my kids, my memories, my connection to the hills.\u00a0 As a Witch and a Priestess I am well acquainted with the Scythe, the curved sickle that harvests the grain.\u00a0 It\u2019s easy to say that no sacrifice is offered without pain, but harder to embrace that slice when it\u2019s your time to fall.<\/p>\n

\"Wheat<\/a>
Wheat field -photo by Sonja Sadovsky<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To distract myself I had set up some book signings. First at the lovely Raven and Crone in Asheville, NC, and on for new adventures and a visit with some friends in Virginia.\u00a0 Work is always my antidote to emotion, as it keeps me moving through the tears.\u00a0 I drove.\u00a0 I screamed.\u00a0 I listened to music I haven\u2019t heard in years. Road tripping is time travel for me, moving through space and hours takes me to all kinds of strange dimensions. This was the first time I was really free from my maternal obligations longer than a festival.\u00a0 I had left the kids with family before, but not like this.\u00a0 It was a strange feeling. Is this what the wheat feels like separated from the stalk?\u00a0 An abrupt cut, disorientation, flying through the air, wondering where it will land?\u00a0 Or is it a relief?\u00a0 Does the wheat surrender to the scythe, and enjoy letting go of the struggle to climb towards the sun in a crowded field?<\/p>\n

\"Altar<\/a>
Altar at Mystic Moon \u2013 photo by Sonja Sadovsky<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My destination was Mystic Moon in Norfolk, Virginia.\u00a0 The ladies at the shop were soothing balm to my frayed nerves.\u00a0 They reminded me that this too shall pass, and these struggles are the new normal of our times.\u00a0 That perhaps we are the pioneers of a new experience in human evolution, and that every year this sacrifice will become simpler, if not easier.\u00a0 I left that place feeling a sense of external calm, but chaotic inside.\u00a0 I was grateful to be among friends, and drove to their quiet neighborhood in Yorktown.\u00a0 Cherries growing in the yard, a tidy kitchen garden, mulch and massive oaks tended with care.\u00a0 These things spoke of structure, balance, a lifestyle I have never known.\u00a0 It was discordant and soothing at the same time.\u00a0 I was conflicted, surrounded with the evidence of what can be accomplished through teamwork, but angry at the mess and noise that seem to flavor my own incarnation.\u00a0 I doubt I was good company, but I tried.\u00a0 My friends were surprised at my willingness to sit outside and watch the rain as the lightning flashed across the sky.\u00a0 I am from Tampa, and it suited my mood.\u00a0 I had a good moment, giving my energy to the storm, letting it blow through me.\u00a0 I surrendered, to the thunder and the wind.\u00a0 The rain beat down as I was hollowed out.\u00a0 Emptied, I was peaceful and finally able to sleep for the first time in days.<\/p>\n

\"Surrender<\/a>
Surrender Field \u2013 photo by Sonja Sadovsky<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The next day we opted to go for some sight seeing.\u00a0 This was crazy, as I had a very long drive ahead of me to get to the next point in my journey.\u00a0 Yet something told me that there was a lesson somewhere in this area for me, and so we trekked over to the Yorktown Battlefield.\u00a0 This historic site was very close and I got a quick lesson in early American politics.\u00a0 For those who are unaware, this is the place where the British surrendered, and the bid for American independence was won.\u00a0 Acres and acres have been preserved, and the energy here is astonishing.\u00a0 So fresh, so clear.\u00a0 Without cement and iron and roads that signify human progress, the ghosts are not muted.\u00a0 The land echoes with the blood and trauma of struggle of those that died and those that survived.\u00a0 It leaves a mark on the spirit of the land. It flavors the wind.\u00a0 It has become sacred ground and truly is the birthplace of our nation.\u00a0 I was humbled at the thought of how many people were united by being present at that moment.\u00a0 The power of that act of surrender, how it changed the course of human history.\u00a0 There comes a point when strife can no longer serve, when sacrifice is necessary to preserve the future.\u00a0 Surrender is an act of bravery, for no one knows what peace will bring.\u00a0 War is predictable, no one really wins.\u00a0 They just run out of bodies and resources.\u00a0 Peace is terrifying, as anything can happen.\u00a0 A heavy lesson, but one I needed.<\/p>\n

We left the area soon after, but I would like to revisit someday.\u00a0 Once I got the message, I decided to drive home.\u00a0 Again, insanity, it is a thirteen hour drive but was worth it.\u00a0 I needed the solitude to unpack my thoughts.\u00a0 In the spirit of Lammas I share them with you.\u00a0 Be grateful for the harvest.\u00a0 Be mindful of the sacrifices that create continuity, peace, and sustenance.\u00a0 Be open to surrender.\u00a0 That pain is the reminder that you are alive, and have so much more to give.\u00a0 What is simple is not easy, but is necessary.\u00a0 You can do it.\u00a0 Let go, and you can shift the tide.\u00a0 This is how the course of history creates the seed of the future.\u00a0 Let go.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Be grateful for the harvest.\u00a0 Be mindful of the sacrifices that create continuity, peace, and sustenance.\u00a0 Be open to surrender.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2580,"featured_media":343,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[114,113,50,111,116,112,115],"class_list":["post-328","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-harvest","tag-lammas","tag-peace","tag-scythes","tag-summer","tag-surrender","tag-war"],"yoast_head":"\nScythes and Surrender<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Does the wheat surrender to the scythe, and enjoy letting go of the struggle to climb towards the sun in a crowded field?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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