COVEN-19, or Magicks for Unprecedented Times: Living Script
performed October, 2020
co-written and performed by: Nicole Bates, Alison Butts, Maegan Clearwood, Mahek Ghelani, Matthew Gover, Percival Hornak, Katherine Johnson, Jemma Kepner, Micki Kleinman, Helen Rahman, Parker Traphagen, Tory Vazquez
OPENING RITUAL
WELCOME SLIDE
ZOOM ORIENTATION
(Zoom Orientation video starts)
OPENING VIDEO
(Opening Video starts)
HELEN- Welcome emperors, empresses, and fellow magicians I hereby declare you as official guests into our exclusive coven tonight. Today we ask of you to bring your mind, body and soul into our sacred space with respect for yourselves and your fellows. We sincerely welcome you to experience rather than watch as a passive audience tonight. Just because we are relying on the ethers of the internet does not mean we will make this a performance that is lesser. We have a live chat,the option to show our videos,and the privilege to be present. Feel free to turn off your camera if that makes you feel more comfortable. That being said, fellow warlocks, we are kindly guiding you to forsake other methods of electricity, and close all other tabs, as this will tamper with the mystical effects of our performance tonight. Photographs and recordings of any kind are strictly prohibited. Eat and drink during our show if you like. If you are so inclined, you can share with us your name and pronouns by changing the name displayed on Zoom. We are asking that you bring your most magical selves to us at this night show. Oh... and.... Proceed with caution: you just might enjoy the ride.
SCREEN SHARE of VIDEO ends
(all coven members turn their video on, sitting in darkness)
Three long breaths. We turn our lights on.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT
MAHEK- We acknowledge that the members of our coven currently occupy the traditional, unceded territories of the Abenaki (ah-buh-nah-kee) of the Wabanaki (wah-buh-nah-kee) Confederacy, Pawtucket (puh-tuck-et), Nipmuc (nip-muck), Pocumtuc (poh-cum-tuck), and Nonotuck (nah-nuh-tuck) Nations. The Indigenous peoples of these Nations are still here and will continue to be here on their ancestral lands.
We acknowledge that we are contributing to the ongoing colonization and settlement of these Indigenous territories. We invite you all to share in the chat whose land you are occupying. You can find this out by visiting the website linked in the chat: https://native-land.ca/.
As a coven with largely Western magick practices, we also acknowledge how much of modern Western witchcraft steals and appropriates Indigenous cultural and spiritual practices.
We can support Indigenous peoples by giving our time, money, and labor to Indigeous organizations, actions, and movements; by committing to returning land to Indigenous Nations; by prioritizing and uplifting Indigenous voices, and by learning and honoring the Indigenous histories of the land we occupy.
INTRODUCTIONS
(the COVEN introduces themselves with names, pronouns, and witchy titles)
Nicole, she/her/hers, music witch
Maegan, she/her/hers, sacred rage witch
Mahek, she/her/hers, breath witch
Matthew he/him/his oration witch
Percy, he/him or they/them, archival witch
Kat, she/her/hers, illustration witch
Jemma, she/her/hers pronouns, latin spellmaker and instagram witch
Micki, she/her/hers, inquisitorial witch
Helen, she/her, high priestess and poetry witch
Parker, she/her/hers, aesthetic witch
Tory, they/them/theirs, hierophant
Maegan - If you would like to introduce yourself by sharing your name and pronouns in the chat, you are welcome to do so now.
BREATH INVOCATION
MAEGAN - Now that we are met, I am going to invite us all to take a collective breath. As a Coven, we regularly remind each other to breathe. It’s so easy to forget that simple task, between daily responsibilities and pressures of the semester and the profound fear of navigating public spaces.
This is a space where you don’t have to be afraid to breathe. And so I invite us all to take a full, deep breath together.
(the COVEN takes a deep breath)
CHECK-IN
MICKI-
We would now like to take time to check in with ourselves and with each other. If you so please, type 3-5 words into the chat on your day, your emotional state or anything else that speaks to you.
(Audience and coven members type their check-in in the Zoom chat)
Samhain & Full Moon Experience - Storied Perspective
Matthew- We encourage you to keep checking in via the chat throughout the performance.
Hello everyone and welcome. As we begin to light the fires of our coven’s sacred ritual, we would like to introduce you to the incredible practices and magicks that will be granting strength to our coven during this time of Halloween. Though we may understand this divine holiday as Halloween today, we honor its luscious roots. Samhain, as we witches lovingly refer to this time of year, is a festival of fires and rejuvenation, celebrating the time between our fall equinox and the coming winter solstice. We celebrate this space because it is when the cloaks between the worlds of the living and the dead are thinnest, making for a collision of energies past and present.
PARKER - To amplify these energies, we have been gifted a full moon around this Samhain. A full moon’s light, as many of us witches and warlocks know, provide the power of illuminating our greatest wants and desires. Known as our manifestations, we look to mother moon, full in her brightest attire, to help illuminate the way and give us the glowing strength we need to pull forth what we crave most in our new year of life. Mother Moon, may you hear us as well call upon your strengths through this time and space.
TORY - To really bubble our cauldrons over this Samhain-season, our Mother Moon has come charged with some of her finest gifts. She is a Blue Moon this Samhain. Such powers ask us to expect the unexpected, granting us the element to call forth anything, and maybe anyone, once seemingly unattainable. Charging our already powered manifestations under her Blue presence means we have been granted the right to see our love, lust, gratitude, hexes, needs, wants, desires, simply everything the soul has in store to come true.
MATTHEW - As our Samhain progresses, this sacred space of witches and warlocks alike will enter its new year of life. We grant this new year the power to heal many of the wounds that have occurred throughout our modern world, and, we look to seek answers that help heal the heavy state we all see clearly today, and every day. May our witches ball be everything you want, charged by the Blue grace of our Mother Moon, and may we guide you through a beautiful experience. Witches and warlocks, we remember best and keep this closest to us during this time of strength and unity: Harm none unless you be betrayed...and if they betray, hex the hell out of ‘em.
Happy Samhain everyone!
INCANTATION
NICOLE -
You are not a machine. You are valued for who you are, not by what you make.
(Nicole cues the coven with a gesture)
REST OF COVEN-You are not a machine. You are valued for who you are, not by what you make.
BREAD & CANDLE SPELL
PERCY- Powered by this opening invocation, we’re going to do our very first spell together - don’t be afraid! Spells are a way for us to build community together, harness our energy, and direct it towards a goal. Right now we’re going to cast a spell with the goal of connecting with each other. We invite you all to light a candle along with us, or turn on some kind of special light source to keep us all connected to each other. If you do have an open flame nearby, please use caution and have some water nearby. You can look at this candle throughout the rest of the evening and watch it burn bright, bringing our ritual to life.
(Audience and coven members light a candle together)
JEMMA- We invite all of you, coven and audience and ushers alike, to join us in breaking bread. You obviously don’t need an actual piece of bread, but if you have any food or drink nearby, let’s take a moment to feed ourselves, to indulge in our nourishment.
(the COVEN and the audience take a moment to eat a bite of something/take a sip of something delicious)
PERCY - As you eat, Jemma is going to offer us an incantation to bring the spell to life.
JEMMA- Unā infrā caeruleo plenilunio iungamus ut alamus nosmet nobis divinis donis dē messis.
Let us join together, as one, under the full blue moon, so that we may feed ourselves with our divine gifts from the harvest.
PERCY- We are now going to divide into four breakout rooms, or “brooms” as we like to call them. The tarot card you chose from our survey sorted you all into one of them, but if you didn’t get a chance to fill it out, don’t worry, we’ve chosen a room for you. You will experience different ritual exercises in each: breath and found objects, writing and drawing, gesture and music, or rage. Once we are through the exercises, we will reconvene back to our full group and integrate what we made into our final ritual. Ushers will be present in each room to help you should you need any assistance. Once you get the breakout room invitation, journey on into your rooms. We’ll see you on the other side.
BREAK OUT ROOMS
(Audience and coven members are sorted into 4 break out rooms)
WRITING & DRAWING (Air)
BREATH & FOUND OBJECTS (Earth)
MUSIC & GESTURE (Water)
RAGE (Fire)
BREATH & FOUND OBJECTS
MICKI-
Welcome to the breath/found object room. We invite you to turn your video on if you wish - we’re going to lead you through a meditation, but first we need you to gather a few things.
Take a couple of minutes to find an object in your house for each of the following prompts, which we’ll read aloud and put in the chat. Don’t think too hard about it - go with your gut. Once you have your objects, set them up in order, so they’re lined up and ready to go in front of you.
(Percy, Micki, and Mahek set 3 min timer)
Please look around your room or your home and -
find an object made out of metal
find something soft or fuzzy
find an object that reminds you of a sunny day
find something borrowed, inherited, or gifted from someone you love
find an object you haven’t touched in a long time
(We repeat the prompts: Mahek, Percy, Micki, and so on)
Micki - We invite you to come back - if there’s something you couldn’t find, we ask you to think of something from your memory or just use something else that’s meaningful to you.
Mahek -
Once you return and have your objects set up, settle in a comfortable position, close your eyes, and start focusing on your breath. Deepen it, consciously spend more time inhaling and exhaling. Do a scan of your body - are there spots where your muscles feel tight, or where you’re feeling uncomfortable? Take this moment to stretch or resettle or do whatever you need to do. Keep breathing.
Pick up your object made of metal and hold it in your hands, with your eyes closed. Take some time to run your fingers over it. How many sides does it have? Is it long or short? Is it curved or sharp? Is it cold or warm? How heavy is it?
Think about the qualities of metal - it can be unyielding, it’s strong, it holds its shape when you bend it. It carries weight. Feel your own body start to grow heavy, really ground yourself in your seat. Think about your strength, your ability to hold your shape against outside pressure. Breathe in deep and let yourself take on the qualities of your metal object.
You are strong.
Percy -
With your eyes closed, pick up your fuzzy or soft object. Take a deep breath… Hold it, embrace it if you want. Is it textured or smooth? Is it thick, or thin? Can you squeeze or squish or fold it? What does the object smell like? Does it give you comfort? Does it remind you of someone or someplace?
Soft objects are flexible, adaptable - they make space and are responsive to the world around them, but they also bounce back against outside pressure. They have grace, they comfort us, their textures are soothing. They give us a place to rest, they encounter the world around them with softness and gentleness. Think about your body at its most rested, your mind at its most clear. Get comfortable in your seat, adjust however you need to in order to feel grounded and comforted. Hold your soft or fuzzy object and think about what it feels like to seek comfort and to have grace, to bounce back against pressure and intrusions from the world around you.
You are gentle.
Micki -
Pick up the object that reminds you of a sunny day and don’t forget to breathe... Feel the physical attributes of this object.
(pause to let them do this)
With your eyes still closed, think about the object’s energy - does it feel warm in your hands? Does it make you feel happy to look at it? Does it make you feel tired? Does it burn?
What does a sunny day feel like to you? What memories do you have of sunny days? Picnics, walks in nature, graduations, weddings? Have you ever had a sunburn? Felt sweat running down your back in the heat? Think about the sun - watching it rise on an early morning car trip, watching it set over the horizon. Feel its warmth on your skin, bask in its radiant glow. Imagine shrinking the sun down into a tiny ball of light and bring that ball of light into your heart. Let it start to glow, lighting you up.
You are radiant.
Mahek -
Pick up your object which was someone else’s and is now yours. Feel the physical attributes of this object.
(pause to let them do this)
Do you feel the love in the object? Has your memory of it or your feelings about it perhaps changed or strengthened over time? Why did your loved one give this to you? Did you give them something in return, and if so what was it? Do you use this object or think of it often? What does it mean to you to have a piece of your loved one with you?
Think about the memories and the feelings you associate with this object and let them bring you joy - think about all the people you know and all the connections you have to them, however big or small, and the different things they bring to your life. Think about the nature of gifts, or of lending something to someone - what it means to give someone a piece of yourself, something that represents you. Think about the trust and security embedded within gifts, and within friendship. Think about all the different kinds of love you’ve experienced and let those memories strengthen you - picture yourself as one piece of a vast network of love and care, spread across hundreds, perhaps thousands of miles.
You are treasured.
Percy -
Pick up the thing you haven’t touched in a long time. Take some time to feel its texture, feel the weight of it in your hands, its physical features.
(pause to let them do this)
Think about why you might not have touched this object in a long time. Is it hung up on a wall, or tucked in the back of a drawer? Is it something decorative, that you don’t need to use very often? Is it a very special or unique object with a very specific purpose? Is it very valuable, and you’re afraid of breaking it?
Are there ways you can give this object more life, love or purpose? Think about all the things you have - what purpose do they serve to you? What sentimental value do they have? What does it mean to keep something, or to give something away? Think about the nature of touch - what is it like to experience touch for the first time in a long time? What have you perhaps not been able to touch in the past several months? What do you miss? What will you celebrate?
Think about your object, which perhaps doesn’t have a lot of purpose right now - that’s perfectly okay. Think about how this object makes time for rest, and think about what rest means to you. Think about how your body feels after a good night’s sleep. Think about what it’s like to nourish your body and prepare for things to come. There may be times when you feel like you lack purpose, or you have trouble convincing yourself that it’s okay to rest. Think about your object, and how it prepares for things to come.
You are allowed to rest.
Mahek -
Take a deep breath… and think about what you’ve learned from your five objects.
You are strong. You are gentle. You are radiant. You are treasured. You are allowed to rest.
Pick what you need most, or bring together whichever pieces feel most valuable to you in this moment. Repeat them as many times as you need, sending those qualities to the parts of your body that need them most.
You are strong. You are gentle. You are radiant. You are treasured. You are allowed to rest.
Micki -
If you need this incantation for yourself, stay with your body. Otherwise, visualize someone in your life that you want to offer these words to. This may be someone you’re close with, someone you want to know better, someone who has been struggling or you deeply empathize with. Offer them the incantation a few times.
Take each object in turn and hold it, thank it for its wisdom, breathe love into it.
You are strong. You are gentle. You are radiant. You are treasured. You are allowed to rest.
Start wiggling your toes and your fingers, tap into your body and start to come back. Breathe with everyone else here, together as one. Ground yourself in your objects, feel the earth beneath you.
Mahek -
Rub your palms together for five to seven seconds, warming up your hands. Then, put them on your eyes. Then, your neck, or arms, or wherever your body needs love. Finally, put them on your heart.
Percy -
When you receive a summons back to the main room, wait to click on it until the time has elapsed and we’ll all go back together. As your breath returns to its natural rhythm, feel the power of our work together in your hands, your mind, and your heart. Bring this power with you to the rest of the coven.
WRITING & DRAWING
TORY-Welcome to the Writing & Drawing room. We invite you to join us in healing through pen and page, mightier than the swords. If you wish to participate, you can turn on your cameras, mics, or use the chat. Take a breath, gather your materials: you will need something to write and draw with, you’re welcome to open a google doc or notes for writing, whatever you need!
BEAT.
Take one breath. In. Out.
CHECK-IN
KAT-Draw the energy you have been carrying today. Whatever that means to you. Did you feel purple today? Did you feel like you were a cloud, or did everything kinda feel like mountains? Did you feel like a goose? It’s up to you!
KAT-Draw anything external that has been causing stress or anxiety for you. Then put it somewhere inaccessible. Draw it somewhere inaccessible, whether that means drawing it and getting rid of it in a cathartic way, running it under water, or putting it in the freezer.
KAT-Draw what you’d like your energy to be tonight.
KAT-Thank you for checking-in with us, Jemma will now lead us through some intuitive tarot. Please open this link to pull a random tarot card, if you have a deck on hand you are welcome to use that. (This link https://randomtarotcard.com/ is sent in the chat)
(Read aloud the randomtarotcard website URL. Copy and paste questions in chat as JEMMA reads. Approx. 30 seconds per question.)
JEMMA-Grab your swords, use them however you wish. You can write or draw in response to these questions.
Think about your card for a minute. It’s okay if you don’t know the card at all. If you do know the card, that’s great! You don’t have to look it up if you don’t want to.
What part of this image strikes you first?
What does this world smell like? Sound like? Feel like (temperature)?
What does this image make you feel?
What would you ask this figure?
What would they say back?
Finally, make your own version of the card.
(Shift to reflection + sharing at 5-7 minutes left, END MUSIC)
JEMMA-We welcome you to start coming to a natural stopping point with wherever you’re at. I’m so grateful I got to experience this with you all. I will pass the torch on to Tory to guide us through some reflection.
BEAT.
(Feel the room. The last few questions are merely there as a resort, let the conversation flow.)
TORY-Let’s open the floor to reflect and share what we’ve made. Feel free to use the chat or turn your mic on.
What card did you all get?
How did you feel about the card you got?
Is there anything that sticks out to you? Any interesting symbolism? Did you incorporate this into your writings/drawings?
What are some things you like about what you made?
How did you feel while writing/drawing?
What were you thinking about while you were writing/drawing? Did your mind revolve around one thing? Several things? Nothing?
Do you wish you had written/drawn something else?
Did you connect your writings/drawings to comforting things?
[PREFACE: Let the breakout rooms close naturally]
TORY-Take a look at what you’ve made, treasure it, however it turned out is valid and loved because you made it. <3!!!
*insert line from incantation*
RAGE
HELEN - Intro poem ~ 2 min
HELEN- Thank you for listening, and welcome to the Rage Broom, where we will be exploring our rage in all its glory. I invite you now to close your eyes. Maegan will lead you in a guided meditation to commune with your own Mistress Arson.
MAEGAN - Let’s begin with one collective, deep breath.
I will be leading you through a guided meditation, focusing on Rage. Together, we will see and feel her fully, not as something to be ashamed of, but as a source of power. Rage can be a scary place to go. This meditation is designed to be a structured way to connect with our rage, but if at any point you feel unsafe in this meditation, you have full agency to take a step back. If you encounter any moments of fear, I encourage you to focus on your breath. Our breath is always a source of safety to which we can return.
What color is your rage? Is it dark or light? Transparent or opaque? Do you find comfort in this color? Fear? Confusion? Envision your rage fully present before you. Give it your full attention.
What does your rage sound like? Is it quiet? Loud? Is rage musical? Is it dissonant? Totally silent? Listen to your rage whispering or singing or yelling into your ear.
What does your rage smell like? Is it a familiar smell? Is it strong or more elusive? Inhale your rage -- take a full, deep breath.
What does your rage feel like? If you were to reach out and touch your rage, how would it feel? Soft or hard? Textured or smooth? Hot or cold? Let rage brush through your fingers.
What does your rage taste like? Sour, sweet, savory, bland? Does it taste like a specific food or recipe, or is it merely flavorful? Taste rage on your tongue.
Where in your body do you feel rage? When you are angry, where do you feel the most strain or intensity? Maybe you’re holding rage in that area of your body right now. Don’t feel any pressure to dissolve rage from that area -- just notice and honor where it lies.
Envision rage filling that area of the body -- let it fully take shape, embodying all of its color and texture and smell and flavor and sound. Let it take up all the space in that area of the body.
Now, let your rage grow. Let it expand from that one area into your entire body -- from the tips of your toes to the crown of your head to the soles of your feet. Let it fill you.
Now, imagine your rage expanding even farther, so that you are enveloped in its powerful energy. Rage is around you, holding you, supporting you. You can surrender to rage, knowing that it will never let you fall.
I invite you to engage in the following dialogue:
To your rage, you may offer: I am sorry. Sorry for pushing you away, pushing you down, neglecting or ignoring you entirely. I am sorry.
In response, your rage offers: I forgive you.
You may offer: Thank you. Thank you for your bubbling power, your support, your passion. Thank you.
In response, your rage offers: I love you.
And now rage says back to you: I am sorry. I apologize for any fear or shame I’ve caused, for harm you have done in my name. I am sorry.
You may offer: I forgive you.
Rage returns with: Thank you. Thank you for giving me a space to exist, for giving me an outlet for my energy.
And finally, you respond: I love you.
Rage is a loyal and powerful companion. Now that you are filled with and surrounded by your rage, we will use that energy as a source of power for collective resistance.
When you are ready, when you are sitting comfortably with and within your rage, you may open your eyes.
PARKER - We will now ask you to share your rage in the chat. Helen, Maegan, and I will create physical manifestations of each other’s rage in the form of three poppets. Later, in our sacred circle, we will use these poppets to transmute that rage into resistance.
(MAEGAN, HELEN, and PARKER move their cameras to focus on their paper/poppet)
With that in mind, respond to the following prompts in the chat:
(PARKER introduces each prompt as we write. She takes about a 15-30 second pause between each)
What are you angry about right now? Who are you angry at right now?
What or who makes you angry from your past?
What invokes feelings of injustice and betrayal?
What systems do you want to burn to the ground?
What deserves to burn -- what do you want to see turned to ash, to never return?
Parker: Now that we have manifested your rage into three poppets, we will rejoin the full Coven. There, as part of our final collective ritual, we will burn our poppets and transmute that rage into fuel.
GESTURE & MUSIC
Hello & welcome to the Gesture & Music Room. We invite you to turn on your video if you feel comfortable and haven’t already, as we lead you through some witch-y presentory works.
General Intro to our piece: Tonight, we invite you to reconnect to your body. We invite you to further explore the work of sound as music and gesture as visuals that will marry together, crafting a harmonious presentation for the self, and maybe, for others. This space is all about reconnecting with the deepest desires of the soul, crafting something satisfying for the soul to move to.
Invoking Energies Of: This eve, we would like to call forth the strength and energy of those living, breathing bodies who have inspired our practice and its elements. May they grant us movement alongside our art and our practice and our coven. We call forth the energies of the great Buffy St. Marie,the astounding Florence Welch, the effervescent Kate Bush, the mystical Sharon Spence, and the ethereal FKA Twigs. May these witches grant us groundedness in our bodies, connectivity to our souls, and progression through our art.
Thank you all, and again, welcome to our space.
Staging Direction: both performers get close to webcam; imperative that a light be dialed in on one side of their faces to create an unnatural glow
NICOLE- We’d like to start you off on a journey through movement. Find a place on your body that needs some love or energy and begin to gently tap this rhythm with us...
Staging Direction: Nicole invites the audience to intensify and to slow their movements; she instructed ebb and flow in gesture work.
Matthew- Keep tapping or patting in the rhythm you so desire, and from here, we are inviting amplification in our gestures. We are going to read aloud a spoken word inspired by the many magicks that have given strength to this very space. Keep moving, and listen to the piece. See if there is a word or phrase that reaches your mind or soul, in any capacity. Here we go:
MATTHEW-
To lie limp
Amongst the moon
Near the glimmer of the candles mouth
We can hold the divine energy of earth’s quiet stars
Above
Observe their dance of light
Listen to the terrifying angels above as they say:
I am the rising sun and the setting sun
I am the new moon and the full moon
I honor the rhythms and cycles of life,
The dance of light and shade.
I honor the ebb and flow in my search for balance.
Nicole- [starts to play music in the background, introducing the new element to our space.]
Matthew- Ah, music is here with us now...
Nicole- As we introduce music to our shared space, we close in on all of the invoked elements and energies of the living, strong witches that have inspired us this eve.
As we marry together the elements of music and spoken word, let the gestures you have created become bigger. Allow them to grow with the words and phrases that have connected with you. Allow the music to carry your body, and hold you throughout.
As Matthew/our oration witch continues exploring our spoken word, we encourage bigger gestures inspired by these two prompts.
Matthew-
Gesture that softens and holds
Getsure that energizes and intensifies
Gesture to smash the worry
We will place these prompts in the chat for ease of access, and further remembrance...
Staging Direction: an usher will place prompts into the chat for us, so as to create ease of access and remembrance.
Matthew- Repeat spoken word 3x
Remember to increase tempo
Leave space to invite gesture and movement
Stage Direction- Nicole begins light tapping again, as to calm the audience down from the ritual practice. I will follow suit.
Nicole- we invite you to come back to tapping and light gesture work. We congratulate you all on a marvelous exploration of gesture and music, through your soul.
Matthew- As we return to our sacred ritual, and the rest of our coven, we will bring back the airy and fluid elements of movement. What we have done here will bring progression through our ritual, and reconnection to the body and spirit. My fellow witch Nicole and I have taken in a wonderful presentation this eve, and we would like to share some gesture that inspired us both back to our coven.
(Breakout Rooms close, all audience and coven members return to the main room)
CLOSING RITUAL
MICKI- We are the breath and found object room - we used the tools of the element of earth to connect with our bodies and learn from the things around us that we may take for granted. We bring connection and breath to the rest of the coven.
Jemma-We are the writing and drawing room. We worked with the grace and wisdom of air, paper, and pen to release our stress, connect with ourselves, and our ancient histories. We bring emotional connections within ourselves and amongst each other to the rest of the coven.
Nicole/Matthew- We are the music and gesture room - we used the tools of water and fluidity to marry gesture and melodic music, we brought ourselves connection between body and soul and provide the coven with movement
that reflects that progression.
Helen - We are the rage broom. We harnessed power through our Rage, and we offer Fuel for Resistance.
MAEGAN - We crafted three Rage poppets with the help of our fellow ragers. A poppet is a small figure of a person -- in this case, they are personifications of our rage. By burning the poppets, we will transmute this rage into energy for resistance.
PARKER- We will now commence with our sacred circle’s closing ritual of the night. We know that this will be filled with chaotic energy and implore you to turn on your mic as you join us in our closing incantation. First Matthew will go through the incantation once then the coven a second time and all of us for a third and final time.*
We know the magic of bandwidth does not grant us unison, so for that portion of the ritual, we ask that we each speak in our own moment, at our own pace.
MATTHEW- Gather under the moon’s sacred geometry: dance of light awoken by terrifying angels; listen to the candle’s mouth/kindling within you. Devour the flames/feed your resistance.
(PARKER burns Poppet 1)
ALL COVEN MEMBERS- Gather under the moon’s sacred geometry: dance of light awoken by terrifying angels; listen to the candle’s mouth/kindling within you. Devour the flames/feed your resistance.
(MAEGAN burns Poppet 2)
AUDIENCE & ALL COVEN MEMBERS- Gather under the moon’s sacred geometry: dance of light awoken by terrifying angels; listen to the candle’s mouth/kindling within you. Devour the flames/feed your resistance.
(HELEN burns Poppet 3)
Beat. We sit with the burning.
NICOLE-You are not a machine. You are you. Not what you make, a number of hours or credits.
Take ownership of your exhaustion, joy, anger, gentleness, numbness, and… humanity.
We will go to the highest place when we take care of eachother, and most importantly, ourselves.
JEMMA - Descendant nostra corpēs in mellem vitae!
NICOLE - Let our bodies descend into the honey of life!
Feed your joy.
ALL COVEN MEMBERS-Rest.
NICOLE-Feed your rest.
ALL COVEN MEMBERS-Rest.
NICOLE- Feed your comfort, let it be radical.
ALL COVEN MEMBERS- Rest.
NICOLE-Feed your resistance.
Beat.
NICOLE- We invite you to blow out your candle, let the smoke fuel and feed your inner fire.
We love and appreciate all of you, we hope you may do the same to yourselves.
Blessed be.
ALL COVEN MEMBERS- Blessed be.
(ALL unmute) (Inhale)
(The COVEN blows out the candles.)
BLACKOUT. An image of the full moon is screen shared.
NICOLE strums her guitar.
Three long breaths (unmuted).
(Cameras come back on, sound muted)
KAT - Thank you for joining us in this full moon ritual. We’ll be here for a little while longer to continue the conversation in the chat, dance, or do whatever else is needed in order to come back to the real world before leaving this space - feel free to turn your cameras on for a moment. Stay if you wish, but no pressure - we’re grateful you joined us this evening and hope you have a magickal night.
(dance party)
(after a song or two…)
KAT - Thank you so much for joining us - have a good evening!
END OF NIGHT