We’ve just held the summer’s first Honoring Ceremony at Flying Cloud! The warmth of the words spoken for those honored lingers in our hearts like the embers that still glow gently in the ashes of the Honoring Fire. After a daylong Quest to find peace through self-reflection and the solace of nature, those being Honored returned home to Flying Cloud to take part in the build
ing the Honoring Fire, a towering testament to the love and respect that campers feel for one another. After all, work is love made visible, and that Honoring Fire is a whole lot of work! A day of fire building leads into a night of singing, dancing, and most importantly Honoring our Questers by speaking to the things which we hold dearest about them. After a Quester is spoken for, they receive their Flying Cloud Words – a distillation of all the beautiful things spoken about that person expressed in elements of the natural world surrounding us. These are the Words that were given.
Charlie:
A frozen meadow, still from night
Dawn’s first ray, a breath of life
Ben:
Above the distant river’s roar,
Stone walls sing with wind
Zach:
Fire’s game, to dance ever higher
Sparks join stars in the sky
Ebin:
Shaded by the oaken grove,
The fox gives thanks
Max:
The sun with gentle hands
Guides us to the mountain
Adam:
The lake meets the sky
The sky feeds the river
The river becomes the ocean
Jem:
Love and patience builds the hearth
That in turn warms the circle
Ozan:
The joyful light of sunrise
Plays across the path
Tal:
The breath of wind stirs the canopy
In rapturous song
As a bright light can lead us on a path
through darkness, these Words are to be forever carried within a person’s heart as a guide towards their truest and best selves. The Honoring Ceremony has ended, and the summer will eventually come to a close, but Flying Cloud doesn’t end then – we can all carry the strength and peace of the place within ourselves always.
Much love, ’til next time!
-Charlie