Ritual: “Sunlight Is The Best Disinfectant” Summer Solstice Ritual
As I’m writing this, misinformation and disinformation are flooding social media as part of a coordinated global campaign to undermine democracy and fully rupture any attempt at consensus reality. In the midst of the 2024 general election, one party is helmed by an actual insurrectionist who has a 50/50 shot at reclaiming power and establishing a theocratic autocracy in the United States, all of which is enabled by members of that party spewing outright lies without any meaningful pushback. Every week we seem to uncover yet another example of right-wing billionaires buying votes on the Supreme Court.
The ritual outlined below builds upon this idea and weaves in the energy of the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, with the goal of dragging these lies and liars into the stark light of the sun. This ritual harnesses the powerful solar energy of this time of the year to shine a spotlight on their corruption. This ritual calls in the purifying flames of the sun to burn away the darkness to expose their machinations.
The Ritual of Pride
Instead of making offers to the land to ensure an abundance of grain we are instead planting seeds of hope to sustain us through the next year. We celebrate our continued survival in the face of systems and ideologies that would seek to erase and destroy us, and mourn those we have lost to violence and oppression. We lift up our dead in prayer, song, dance, sex, and celebration to ensure their stories carry on.
New Moon Ritual: June 2024
I’m writing this morning feeling a mix of restless and well-rested. My jaw hurts from clenching it throughout the night. That’s probably because the message that came through was about fear and anxiety, and some of the way that manifested was through feeling these things very deeply at various points throughout the night.
Queer Ancestor Spotlight: Leonard Matlovich
Leonard Matlovich was an American Vietnam War veteran, recipient of the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star, and was the first openly gay service member to purposely out himself to the military in order to fight their ban on gay men serving in the armed forces. He is also the first named openly gay person to appear on the cover of a U.S. news magazine.
New Moon Ritual: May 2024
To be honest, I probably should have skipped this month’s ritual. The last few weeks have been incredibly hectic and stressful, and I didn’t even realize until halfway through the day that it was the new moon. But, because of my ADHD, it’s really important to me to maintain a routine so I decided to stick with it.
New Moon Ritual: April 2024
You know that meme about the witch that forgets what day it is and then scrambles to put together their ritual with whatever is laying around the house? That wasn’t quite me for this new moon, but it was close. I totally lost track of time and didn’t realize the new moon coincided with the eclipse. Suffice it to say, this was a very interesting experience.
Queer Ancestor Spotlight: David Kato
David Kato Kisule was a Ugandan teacher and LGBTQ+ rights activist, considered by many to be the father of the Ugandan gay rights movement. He was a founding member of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) and was deeply involved with the underground LGBTQ+ rights movement in his home country.
New Moon Ritual: March 2024
This month’s New Moon Ritual resulted in another very visual, visceral experience similar to the first ritual that resulted in this monthly endeavor. I’m a few days late in posting this because it took a while to figure the words, and even now I’m not entirely sure I’m capturing everything and doing the experience justice. I’m going to provide a brief narrative of what I experienced, followed by a few closing thoughts on what meaning I am finding. That doesn’t mean you’ll walk away from this with the same understandings.
Queer Ancestor Spotlight: Federico García Lorca
Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theater director. He is considered one of the most important Spanish poets of the 20th century. He was a member of the Generation of ‘27, which was a group of poets who brought modern European artistic movements into Spanish literature. During the Spanish Civil War in the 1930’s he toured rural Spain and put on free theatrical shows of classical Spanish theatre before being arrested by Nationalist militias and assassinated.
New Moon Ritual: January 2024
Once I stopped getting in my own way, I was able to receive and process the power behind this message. For those of us in marginalized communities, especially those that don’t fit the worldview of the cis white supremacist Christian Nationalism that has roared to power, I think we sometimes forget how one of the most powerful tools of resistance we have in our arsenal is love.