Wild Wisdom Community Day – Sunday May 15th
Words and images by Jan
Our group of seven gathered at Sam’s where we sat in the garden, in beautiful May sunshine, sharing a birthday breakfast with Beth.
Such a lovely space. We were tempted to chuck our plans away and stay there all day, but the high moors were calling and so we set off towards Merrivale which was the first point on our little pilgrimage.
When we arrived at the Bronze Age site of Merrivale, we gathered our thoughts and turned them, with love, towards the members of our Wild Wisdom community who were not present with us. Then we allowed our thoughts and feelings to roam back in time to a wider community: our forebears and the ancestors of the land around us.
Stone row at Merrivale
As we walked quietly along the stone rows, I wondered what they had been created for, what rituals and ceremonies had taken place there, and I saw myself walking beside one of the women of pre-history in silent contemplation of the land around and the mystery of the eternal cycles of life of which the land speaks to us.
We offered a libation and brief meditation to honour the place then walked slowly back via the stone circle towards our cars.
The next point in our pilgrimage was to return fully to the here and now, acknowledge the rumbling tums and find a suitable spot for a picnic lunch. 
This was a glorious spot by the river near Hexworthy and, as ever, our bring and share efforts turned into a perfect feast. 
Over lunch, Clare told us a short but intriguing local story about a midwife whose encounter with the faerie folk leaves her with only one eye – but an eye that sees with faerie vision. It had echoes of the previous day’s story of The Loathly Lady who in Sam’s wonderful telling also had one eye. We had an interesting conversation about this: the one eyed hag who sees everything as one……….
Restored by our rest and repast we carried on up the road to the beautiful little chapel of St. Raphael. We had decided over lunch to make this the last point in our pilgrimage, so that we could spend some spacious time there, and what a good decision that turned out to be!
Believed to be the only church or chapel in the country to be dedicated to St. Raphael, it is a very special place. I felt that the simplicity and stillness allowed for something much bigger to be present there and also that we were very welcome. The few “decorations” were beautifully appropriate, including a rich icon of Raphael and two beautiful arrangements of fresh wild flowers.
We sat in a circle, lit some incense and listened to the story of Raphael and Tobias, told by Helen. It is a wonderful mini-novella from the book of Tobit and it touches on many themes including companionship, trust, protection and healing – all very resonant for our community and our pilgrimage. Then we sang a gentle Jewish chant which invoked four of the archangels, and it was a lovely ending to our day.
The places we visited all had their own magic, but I am reminded yet again how much more potent it can be when shared in community. Images and feelings are with me even now; I am glad that I was able to be part of the day and I look forward to future community days. It is, for me, a crucial and enriching part of the Wild Widsom we are exploring.
