I remember a lady from Norway saying to me once, 'there is no such thing as bad weather Richard, only bad clothing!' She makes a good point. As one who draws inspiration from observing nature, I have found that with this study the more challenging weather becomes less something to endue and more something to engage with, marvel at and learn from. In short I love the seasons. However I acknowledge the last few days will have been a real challenge for some and I've no doubt we all are grateful to those who have no choice but to venture out in all weathers to keep us safe and healthy.

​As I write this large, thick, fluffy snowflakes continue to float gently yet persistently from the sky, covering much of the United Kingdom in a blanket of snow over the last 48 hours. For many though who don't need to travel, today will have become a 'snow day'! 

And I have noticed something. There is something in the air. Not only the snowflakes. A kind of charge of excitement and anticipation. Something we have lost amongst our busy and all to often disconnected lives. Something magical!

Last night heavy snow had settled before the pub opposite closed and an impromptu snow ball fight erupted in the car park at last orders. This morning excited children woke to learn their schools were closed and the snow had settled.​ As snowfall is less frequent these days with warmer winters, many youngsters will today be experiencing their first snow day. Whilst making my breakfast a starry eyed group of children passed by on their way to the local park, chatting and laughing loudly whilst pulling sledges behind them. Friends have posted videos of curious pets encountering the white stuff for the first time.

Have you ever stood at the window and watched the snow fall, totally mesmerised, perhaps opening the window to draw a deep breath of that clean, crisp smell? Snow is cleansing. In the air as it falls silently, gathering with it both pollution and sound, but also on the ground as it paints the land anew. Many of us will recall the joy of being the first to a field or park after fresh snowfall and staring at it like a blank canvas just waiting for our footprint creation!

“Children see magic because they look for it.” 
― Christopher Moore

So what this sense of something deeper I feel. So many people I meet are disenchanted with life. They have been hurt, struggle with meaning and feel a sense of helplessness at the way of the world. They are looking down. Down at their feet, down at their phone. We have become evermore disconnected, from each other and from the natural world around us and the simple joys these interactions can bring. We have forgotten to look for the magic.

Snow seems to rekindle in us a sense of wonder, it causes or forces us to slow down or stop. To stand and marvel. To focus on what is important and connect through necessity with those around us. And perhaps, to become a little bit less stressed and therefore nicer in the process. Priorities realign. People say things like, 'he's never seen snow before, I won't go to work, I will go to the park and play'. On social media people are offering help and advice to others affected by the weather. We stand and we notice and we remark, wow, doesn't that frozen lake or tree look beautiful.

Where we have become disenchanted, we are re-enchanted.

​We notice the magic.

So when the snow eventually melts and the green shoots of spring take hold, as they no doubt soon will, we will once again be able to pick up that faster pace of life. But it is my snow day wish that we perhaps hold onto something from our snow enforced 'pause and look', let us hope we continue to look for the magic.

​In a noisy world the snow brings us a moment of quiet wonder and serenity - may you regain your childlike wonder, may you always see the magic! x

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Invaluable life guide or spooky superstition? The Tarot remains to many a mystery and yet there is a sustained and even increasing interest in this western divination system.

I recently met up with Sue Terry, a Tarot Consultant and one of the professional readers at Treadwell's Books, to explore and attempt to demystify 'the cards'.

​Sue has a fantastic knowledge of the subject and talked about perceptions of the cards, their symbolism, the practical versus the esoteric interpretations and Tarot history. It was a rare opportunity to explore this diverse subject with such an experienced reader. I hope you find it interesting and useful. You can listen here....

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Sue Terry is available for readings at Treadwell's most Thursdays, or can be contacted through her website 'Tarot on the Hill'.
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Interview links;

I'll never forget the first time I met Dave 'Damh' the Bard in person. It was my first year studying with the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (OBOD) and I had missed the deadline for the summer gathering tickets. I emailed Dave and asked if I could be put on a stand by list as I really wanted to attend, it being my first year. He managed to sort me a ticket. When I found Dave at the gathering to thank him, he said, 'let's have a welcome to OBOD hug'. He truly is a gentle giant.

At the most recent OBOD gathering we all awoke on the final Sunday to the tragic news of the terror attack in Borough Market, Dave played his track 'time machine' and I don't think there was a dry eye in Glastonbury Town Hall. It struck me that as well as inspirational, how deeply healing his music can also be. 

I caught up with Dave recently before his performance at the Mercian Gathering where he had us all up and dancing late into the night. You can listen to our chat in the sound file below, where Dave talks openly about his route into Paganism and Druidry, and his exciting new album project based on the Tales of the Mabinogi. Enjoy!

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To access all Damh the Bard music and information, click the following link...

Here is the trailer for Damh the Bards up coming Mabinogi album...

​I recently had the pleasure of chatting over coffee in a Guildford cafe with the incredibly talented Eleanore, from the band Eleanore & the Lost. In an in depth interview Eleanore chats about the motivation for her music, current and past albums and upcoming live gigs. You can listen to the interview here...

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Interview links;

Eleanore & the Lost website for access to all music, merchandise, live gigs etc... 
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Follow Eleanore & the Lost on Facebook here..
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Website for Witchfest...

Not all will have noticed but up and down the length of the United Kingdom there is activity! Farmers have started the first harvest. Some pretty impressive July storms have brought torrential rain across most of the country and with them a sense of frustration for farmers who have been watching and waiting for the right moment to begin.

I have also noticed some frenzied activity on the large bramble thicket opposite my bedroom window; there is a currently a battle to get the best early ripened blackberries, who will win, the walkers with their tupperware tubs or the blackbird who lives there? 

For the ancestors of this land this time was known as Lughnasadh and was one of the four important Celtic fire festivals. For people whose lives rotated around and depended upon the agricultural year, the festivals almost certainly offered a wonderful opportunity for celebration and merriment but were also likely to have been a time to give thanks to their Gods for the abundance which nature had provided since the spring. 

Lughnasadh is important to Pagans today and makes up one of the eight wheel of the year festivals or sabbats, the others being the remaining three ancient Celtic fire festivals, Beltane, Samhain and Imbolc along with those relating to the movement of the sun, summer and winter solstice and spring and autumn equinox.

In Anglo Saxon times with the coming of Christianity Lughnasadh became Lammas or 'loaf mass' due to the tradition of baking a loaf from the first grain and taking it to a church to be blessed.

The name Lughnasadh originates from the Celtic God Lugh and the word nasad meaning assembly. So essentially 'gathering for the God Lugh'. Legend has it that Lugh started the festival himself in honour of his foster mother Tailtiu, an earth Goddess who died from exhaustion after clearing the land in Ireland to allow for agriculture.

​Lugh is seen as a God of the sun, of the light. It is symbolic that at this time of first harvest the light is starting to wane as we head towards the darker days of autumn and winter. The heat of the sun has entered the corn and in combination with the richness of Mother Earth, allowed it to grow. It is as if Lugh himself has entered the corn. He must now be cut down and so that people may eat through through the winter, sacrificing himself for others, but sure in the knowledge that come spring he will return and his strength will be restored. Traces of this ancient symbolism, most likely familiar to our ancient ancestors, can still be seen today in folklore stories such as John Barleycorn, who gave his name to many a public house, reflecting the echoes of the past that are all around for those who see.

Perhaps Lughnasadh is a good moment to pause and be thankful for what nature provides, to wonder at the abundant result of the powerful sun and the nourishing earth, to reflect on seeds we planted in spring and how they may be coming to fruition and to consider how we will prepare and sustain ourselves for the darker months ahead.

​Lughnasad Blessings to you all! 
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For many people speaking about death remains a taboo, however as my interview with Sarah Weller shows, it doesn't have to be scary and feeling empowered to make better choices around end of life care and funerals can be a deeply moving, healing and even spiritual experience.

You can listen to my interview with Sarah here;

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I started Windhover Ceremonies to provide a Celebrant service to all regardless of their spirituality or beliefs. I do however find myself well placed to serve those of nature based or other Pagan paths and enjoy creating something meaningful for people, rather than them having to 'make do'. Firmly reestablished in the UK is Heathenry and its various paths such as Asatru. It is important to recognise this is a serious faith path today with a growing number of followers. There are also however many who are inspired by the Viking age, helped in no small part by the wonderful series Vikings on the History Chanel. So if you are a Viking fan or Viking reenactor you too may be on the look out for something, well, a little more Norse. 

For someone like me who is first and foremost a student of a path with its origins in the 'Celtic' period of the Bronze and Iron Age, pre history, I find the Viking period especially fascinating as there is such a rich array of historic accounts of the periods and of rites of passage that we simply don't have for the ancient 'Celts'. The oral tradition of the 'Celtic' peoples was cut short when the guardians of their knowledge, The Druids, were slain by the Romans in circa 60 AD on the Welsh island of Anglesey. However the reach of Rome did not make it as far as Scandinavia and therefore the oral tradition continued until it was written down in the sagas. 

I have researched and written a three part article 'Viking Rites' to help provide ideas and inspiration for those desiring Viking / Heathen ceremonies. I hope you find the following interesting, beginning with part 1 - baby naming.
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Throughout history and across cultures, naming a newborn child has always been held as an important rite and it was no different for the Norse. For followers of Heathenry today, including Asatru, we can draw on historical sources for inspiration to mark this most important of occasions. ​

The sagas make a number of mentions of a ceremony to name a new born, referring to it as 'Vatni Ausa' meaning to pour or sprinkle water over. 

The ceremonies were undertaken for both girls and boys.

"Then in the summer when Þórsteinn was twenty-five years old, Þóra gave birth to another son, who was sprinkled with water and given the name Grímr. Þórsteinn dedicated this boy to Þórr, calling him Þórgrímr." (Eyrbyggja saga, chapter 11)

"In the summer Þóra gave birth to a girl, who was sprinkled with water and given the name Ásgerðr." (Egils saga Skallagrímssonar, chapter 35)

I note that both accounts I quote mention the baby being born in summer, perhaps an indication of how the Vikings passed those long Scandinavian winters nights...;)

The ceremony would begin with the baby being picked up, usually by the father, from the ground. This is thought to be an act of acceptance. The naming rite was seen as the official moment the baby became part of the family and when they became protected under Viking law.

​Water would then be sprinkled on the child. This practice pre-dates the Christianisation of the region and is subtly yet distinctly different from baptism. In baptism the water is to 'purify' the child, referred to in old Norse during the later Christian period as 'skirn' meaning purification. In the pre Christian Vatni Ausa ceremony the water was to 'hallow' meaning to bless or make sacred, essentially, a blessing from the Gods.

The 'hallowing' or blessing was completed with the sign of the hammer being made over the child, referencing or invoking the protection of the God Thor. Thor, despite his mighty hammer wielding image, is also the protector and blesser of all humankind. 

The act of giving the child their name is referred to as 'nafnfesti' meaning name fastening, the same derivative as 'hand fasting'. At nafnfesti it was customary to give gifts to the child. In the sagas of Ragnar Lothbrok, Ragnar is said to have placed his son in his cloak, named him Sigurd and given him a gold ring. A child would then be given gifts again when they cut their first tooth, believed to be the origin of the 'tooth fairy'. 

To add authenticity and for those for whom Heathenry is their faith I offer a choice of water for the blessing from Iceland or Norway. Both originating deep within the earth of these ancient lands, my hope is that the waters carry the spirit of these places and their Old Gods.

I hope that I have informed and inspired you, please feel free to get in touch via the contact button above if you would like me to assist with a ceremony.

In Part 2 of 'Viking Rites' I will be looking at Marriage. To keep up to date with all the latest blog posts as they are published please like the Windhover Ceremonies Facebook page;

Whilst in the wonderfully bohemian East Sussex seaside town of Brighton this week, I headed down to the North Laine and Cultural Quarter and met up with Brighton resident Robin Taylor, who is the current President of the Pagan Federation. Listen to my interview here;

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​On a cold and crisp morning back in January I headed west to Somerset, a mystical English county of rolling green hills and watery levels, often enshrouded in rolling mists.

​If you've ever witnessed the sight of these mists hanging just above the fields in the warm red light of a summer sunrise you'll get a good feeling for where the magical tales of our ancestors may have come from. Even the most hardened occupant of our modern rational world could perhaps, just  for a moment, be tempted into entertaining the thought that a dragon could be waking from its nights slumber behind that oak covered hill and exhaling its fiery breath, visible for all to see, on the crisp morning air. 

Somerset is of course home to the town of Glastonbury, a frequent destination for me, but this time I was not heading for Glastonbury but rather for a stay in a little thatched cottage in the tiny village of South Cadbury which lies in the shadow of Cadbury Castle.

For those of you who say 'Cadbury Castle - where???' the first reply would be to say that you are not alone in this response, many have yet to hear of this very special place. The second answer is that you may have heard it referred to by another name, a name that simply oozes with myth and magic.....CAMELOT! But I shall return to speak of King Arthur later in this article.

We know that Cadbury Castle was occupied in Neolithic times, bones found at the site have been dated to around 3500BC. It's early life was as a peaceful hilltop farming community as demonstrated by evidence of early ploughing of the site, later in the first century BC it was heavily fortified and evidence points to the fact it was taken by military force in AD 43.

​Occupied throughout the Bronze Age and into the Iron Age herein lies its main fascination for me. For this is the period that the mysterious people known generically as 'The Celts' called this land their home. The Celts alone hold an endless fascination for me but also for part of that period, into Celtic society emerged a mysterious priestly class, the Druids! As a student of a modern spirituality that takes both name and inspiration from these mysterious people, I take any opportunity to learn all I can about them. This is a challenge as they wrote nothing down, rather committing their wisdom to memory and delighting in the skill of recounting their wisdom orally via their poets and storytellers, the Bards! Their story fell quiet at Anglesey in North Wales when the Romans killed all remaining Druids, but is there a place where, or a way we can still hear that story told? A site like this can offer precious gifts for one who wishes to understand these ancient, intriguing and yet most mysterious of ancestors. The first gift being archaeology, the second something a little less tangible. 

I shall start with archaeology. Cadbury Castle has been excavated on a number of occasions. By a local clergyman James Bennett in 1890, again in 1913 by Harold St George Gray and then a major project led by Leslie Alcock between 1966 and 1970. It was during this more recent work that a number of important finds were discovered, the most impressive of these being the South Cadbury Shield. 

The Shield is now displayed in the Museum of Somerset in Taunton along with a large range of fascinating artefacts from the time. It really is well worth a visit.

I was also fascinated, if a little surprised, to find within the Taunton Museum the largest collection of English Cauldrons and Skillets in existence. Apparently Somerset and especially the town of South Petherton, was a major centre for production in the 17th Century. They were designed for cooking over an open hearth, the heart of any English home since pre history. It is little wonder that this great mixing pot at the very centre of hearth and home came to have deep spiritual meaning for many. 

But let me return to the gifts of sites such as Cadbury Castle. I have mentioned the archeology, but what of this second less tangible gift. Well for me to understand the second gift we must first examine the limitations of the first. The archeology is fascinating and can tell us much. The Shield can reveal materials of the age and the skills and artistic ideas of the people of that age. It can also suggest strong theories of the spirituality of the people, as items very often appeared to be carefully placed rather than lost, indicating offerings or rituals. But what it can't do is really enter the minds of these ancestors and tell us why they did what they did and what their relationship was to this land and to this place. 

For me therefore the second gift is that of relationship to place. To visit these sites with intent and to walk feeling this ancient ground beneath my feet where I know the ancestors walked before me. To stand and watch for a while, admiring the view, little changed in the thousands of years that have passed since they lived here. To feel the wind bluster against my skin almost carrying with it the words of those who have gone before. To stand under the vast sky and feel the warmth of the same sun that they watched rise each morning in the east and set each night in the west. To do this is where I can quietly connect and to get a sense of what they maybe felt. This for me is the closest I can come to knowing their minds and knowing what this place meant to them in a spiritual sense.

​And what then of Camelot? Although King Arthur has been transformed into a late Medieval King of gleaming silver armour by countless films and television productions, if there was an Arthur who defended the Britons against the Anglo Saxons he would most likely have been an important tribal leader with a loyal war band at the beginning of the time known as the Dark Ages. After the Romans left. Due to the known timing of enhanced fortification at the site, the presence of a 'Great Hall', finds of Mediterranean pottery showing trade links with Europe and the location of Cadbury Castle at the gateway to the West, there is a general acceptance that an important tribal leader did reside or operate from here and it would have been an ideal location from which to defend an eastern frontier. Therefore Cadbury Castle has been put forward as a good contender for King Arthurs legendary home base, Camelot. Further credence was given to Cadbury being Camelot by the presence of the town of Queen Camel a few miles to the east with the river Cam flowing close by. The theory Cadbury Castle was actually Camelot was first  proposed by early English historian John Leland in 1542 and was given a boost by renowned Arthurian historian and writer Geoffrey Ashe, many disagree but as with all things King Arthur the magic is in the mystery and the mystery is in the magic. Perhaps visit one day and see what secrets you may hear whispered on the winds of Cadbury Castle.

As a footnote to this article I also have a personal connection with the area. My family on my paternal grandmothers side originate from the Queen Camel area and I have traced them as living there until the earliest records available. My great grandmother worked in service to the Bennett family in the 1800's, the very same family of James Bennett who excavated the site in 1890. We know that when Cadbury Castle was finally deserted after thousands of years of inhabitation, the local people settled in the land around the Castle. This was the origin of villages such as South Cadbury and Queen Camel where my family lived. Is it possible that they once lived or worked at Cadbury Castle itself? Did they drink mead in the Great Hall? I will of course never know, but it just maybe offers an explanation of my affinity with the place today. 

Yours in the mystery!

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