by Margot Henderson
What a joy to finally get to come out to play in Dumfries and Galloway, a place that has been calling me for a while now. I couldn’t have a better playmate and tour guide than DJ, who has lived and worked ‘doon hame’ for ages. It was so touching to see the place-ing of the work she has done there, the breadth and depth of it, the enduring-ness.
With Sal from the Stove, we wandered around so many inspiring sites, The Crichton, Caerlaverock Castle, and The Wetlands Trust. I got to hear stories about colourful characters who have made such a difference through the ages. We mused on so many possible themes we might want to work with, The Wild Geese, The River Nith, The Show Must Go On, Heritage and Legacy, What We Do Now…
I found myself wondering “What can I possibly bring to all of this?
How do I hold my questioning without doubting or worrying, but as a sacred question, a wondering, trusting the unfolding…”
What Do The Geese Know
They know how to go the way the wind blows.
How to follow the rhythms of the seasons
and the magnetic pathways of the earth.
They know how to get from here to there
how to be home everywhere.
Some of us have lost our sense
of feeling at home anywhere.
We have gone from feeling
one with everything
to feeling on our own, everywhere.
We cut loose, living like a lone goose.
How do we gather in, come back into rhythm
feel our belonging
to the all and everything,
taking each other under our wings
feeling the whole universe under our skin.
Geese teach community building
how to move from isolation to murmuration
How do we rise up like the geese
remembering that we have wings
So over the course of the Wild Goose Festival and What We Do Now, we will explore some of the above themes, and share creative practices in coming back to our senses, community arts and creating regenerative nature culture tools for resilience.
