Not completely sure what to write about for today’s “Thinking About” topic. I could discuss all the protests, but really that’s been overdone on various social media outlets to the point that my head is starting to hurt. I could do a detailed look at Disney’s “The Mandolorian” but that’s more of a personal musing than anything else. So, this post might sit for a bit until I can figure something out…

Well, with Life constantly moving at breakneck speed, I am now at the end of the day…and sort of in the same space as before. But….there are places we can take this to….

Tomorrow, June 5th, my calendar shows that Philip Carr-Gomm’s farewell address to the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids will take place. On the 6th, Eimer Burke’s installation ceremony as the Order’s new Chosen Chief will take place. Both are, at least in my mind, big changes for the Order going forward. For many of us, myself included, Philip is the only Chosen Chief we have known. And for some, Eimer may be an unknown quantity of sorts. I have had the opportunity to meet both over the last few years at Gulf Coast Gathering, and I find that they are two very different people. Where Philip is a quiet individual (from what I experienced of him), Eimer is quite vivacious and outgoing. I enjoyed my self-limited experience of both (more on that in just a moment) during my time there. I know the two of them have spent a lot of time trying to make this transition as smooth as possible, and as a member of the Order, I deeply appreciate this. I am looking forward to both events in the next two days, as well as the coming future.

Now, I noted my time with them was self-limited. I tend to do that with any of the guests that Gulf Coast Gathering has. On the one hand, I am one of nearly fifty guests there. On the other hand, the guests are there to soak up as much as they can of Louisiana that can be offered through the Gathering’s weekend. I am always cognizant of taking up the time of people, especially those whom I only know in passing. I did the same at the OBOD East Coast Gathering with Damh the Bard, his lovely wife Cerri and Kristoffer Hughes. I didn’t try to insinuate myself into the smaller campfire conversations that they were a part of. After all, the three of them had traveled from the UK to the States – they deserved time away from everyone and everything as much as the next person. Just my own perspective on that….everyone else’s mileage may vary.

The calendar also notes that the 24th is the coming Alban Hefin, or Midsummer or Summer Solstice, which reminds me that I should already be planning for that to one degree or another. Just where in the Nine Hells did this year go?? While I am not huge on celebrating the Wheel of the Year, instead focusing on finding celebration in daily ritual perspectives, I do my best to at least be observant of the Solstices. Doesn’t mean I always manage to do so…but I try.

The reality is that we’ve reach June. By the end of the month, we’ll be reaching the mid-point of the year. Looking back, its not exactly been the best start to a year, but looking forward – I see a lot of hope. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Coronavirus, racial strife raising its ugly head again, the lashing out of a President without controls – how in the world can I see hope in all of that? Well, let’s start with the same notion of what is taking place tomorrow and Saturday within OBOD – change. Coronavirus has not only made us change the way in which we communicate with each other, but also made us very aware of how connected we are to one another through our environment. We wear masks to keep from spreading the virus between us all, we have learned the connecting to one another can be done without being around each other, and I am fairly certain all of this is going to change the way we deal with one another with a different manner of closeness. All the racial issues that have reared up are showing us how much more still has to be changed going forward. We are still a long ways from being able to remove this ridiculous bias towards skin pigmentation that permeates throughout our society in the world. Regardless of skin color, hair color, eye color, handedness, height, weight, number of digits….we’re all still human beings. The same with some minor differences of diversity, which makes things pretty cool and fun, in my opinion. So, instead of seeing despair, I see a progression towards change. Its just up to us how we want that change to manifest.

The elephant in the room. The violence, the looting, the generally bad behavior. Look folks, that is going to happen when people get frustrated. No its not “right” – it is understandable. Plus, some of that is not perpetrated by the BLM folks, but by others with other agendas…and genuine criminal types seeking an advantage to what they do. But when you’re not listened to, told to sit down and shut up whenever you voice concerns, and police brutality continues to happen in major disproportionate numbers to people of your skin pigmentation….there is going to be frustration that grows from that. Plus, let’s not let that behavior hijack the overall message. Stuff needs to be done, stuff needs to be changed, stuff needs to be set right. That’s right…change is not only needed, its going to be necessary.

So….someone once asked me what I thought about June in terms of the year. Well, its the last month of the first half of the year. Its a tipping point, where the year becomes a downward slope. Its a place of change. And everywhere I look, I see change occurring. Some of it is fast change, some of it is much slower change – but its all change. And if we adjust right, its all good.

–T /|\