SOUTHEAST FLORIDA DRUM/DANCE CIRCLE NEWSLETTER
Monday, 18 December 2006

Offered to you by the Southeast Florida Drum Circle Community
Michael Dean Goodman, Coordinator, 561-350-3930
SoutheastFloridaDrumCircleCommunity-owner@yahoogroups.com

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HUGE BONFIRE DRUM CIRCLE - CELEBRATING THE WINTER SOLSTICE

THIS THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21ST, 6PM TILL MIDNIGHT

DON'T MISS IT!

Held at:
Hugh Taylor Birch State Park, 3109 E. Sunrise Blvd., Ft. Lauderdale FL

This is one of the biggest and best drum circles in the whole SE Florida
area. It is held every three months, at the start of each season (the
equinoxes and solstices) to welcome in and celebrate the new season. It
is the one drum circle that integrates the entire SE Florida drumming/
dancing community, attracting folks from all directions, far and wide.

* Great drumming and dancing (belly dancing, free-style dancing, etc.),
fire-spinning performances, etc.

* A huge spread of food (potluck style) - if you want to share in the
feast, please bring snacks, drinks, and your own utensils. A grill
may be available; electricity is not.

* A 15-minute ritual will be held at 10pm to welcome in the new season.
The northern stone will be placed, and the fire lit, at 6pm.
You are welcome to bring items to be energy-charged on the altar, such
as flowers, talismans, statues, stones, crystals, etc.

* Volunteers are needed for setup and teardown and ceremony - call Mark.

* You can drum, chant, dance, watch, socialize, network...

Hosted by:
Moon Path Pagan Circle (http://www.moonpathcircle.org) and Florida State
Park Ranger Mark Foley
Info: 954-655-7182 (Mark), 954-564-4521, spelcastor@...,
sophialinus@...

Directions:
1. Take I-95
2. Exit at Sunrise Blvd. eastbound
3. Go east on Sunrise Blvd., over the Intercoastal bridge
4. Hugh Taylor Birch State Recreation Area will be the last left before
A1A (there is a sign and a left turn lane)
5. Entrance fee is $5 (to cover events costs, insurance, and required
Park Ranger staff for the evening.
6. Follow the circular drive 3/4 of the way around, to the Primitive
Camp Area (it will be obvious), and turn left into the parking area.



Mark Foley, one of the event organizers, wrote:

Elements of Modern Celebration

The Earth moves around our star (the Sun) nearing her closest position
(perihelion), yet the northern axis of our planet tilts away, so that
the days have steadily grown shorter (into perpetual darkness past the
Arctic Circle). Come celebrate as a community, marking the shift into
waxing starlight, with bonfire, drumming, dancing, and celebration!

Earth-based ritual is the act of aligning the human experience with the
observed cycles of Nature and at each juncture adding a rite of intention
into the process. Humans, as unique creatures with the capacity to move
focus between past experiences, present moment, and future contemplation,
are so conditioned to be elsewhere at any given moment, that the actual
"being-ness" with the present does not come with ease to most of us.

Attuning to the natural cycles is a very human trait of response that may
help us move into this sense of simply being with the same processes that
have created us. Aligning with these movements, which appear mostly ex-
ternal to us, serves our sense of equilibrium with the planet foremost.
It may offer inroads to deeper understanding that becomes profoundly in-
fluential on how we conduct our lives.

The majority of other creatures on our planet respond to the forces we
are all subjected to with no need to reflect as we do. They are more the
actors than the observers, while we strongly play both roles. There are
internal mechanisms that have evolved within organisms that shed light on
these roles of life. There is a very defined and studied circadian clock
(24 hour cyclical sense) in many species, including humans [divided into
natural 90-minute cycles]. How often have you woken one or two minutes
before your alarm had gone off?

An internal circa-lunar clock is also displayed inside many animals, run-
ning in synchrony with the Moon and tides. These findings, first noted in
insects, have since appeared in mammal, bird, and reptile species, based
on their feeding, breeding, and migratory patterns. The implications of
what this means are astounding.

We know that the Earth's magnetic field is used by a number of creatures
including bird and marine life. Baby Sea turtles are especially noted
with the ability to distinguish and follow the magnetic fields of the
planet.

The Solar year has the same oscillating effect on us, even in our sub-
tropical climates (like Florida). Although we live busy lives and hustle
to and fro, and live largely in a state of disconnect from the trees, and
from other non-domesticated animals, our rhythms shift in both subtle and
dramatic ways throughout the year.

The Earth, without the Moon or its parent star, our Sun, would not be the
creature that it is, were this not its configuration. This is simple and
common sense, but consider the configuration outside of meager dismissal
of something that we take for granted – the sun rising and setting every
day, the Moon waxing and waning monthly, the seasons oscillating between
wet and dry. We are part of a star system, and our planet is an extension
of our very own breath and pulse. The air in our lungs, for example, is
connected to the same sea of air that is at the very fringe of our world's
atmosphere. The Earth, in fact, can be seen as our Greater Being.

This entire vision is Life, the Self-Creation, which we are not central
to, but which we are an astounding part of. Let us find the essential
meaning in these known facts, come together, and share our individual
takes on them.

Have a wonderful Winter Solstice.

Mark Foley








Namaste,

Michael
Southeast Florida Drum Circle Community, Coordinator
southeastfloridadrumcirclecommunity-owner@yahoogroups.com
561-350-3930 (you can call 24 hours/day)

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