Hello All I am scrambling to get this done late at night because tomorrow the girls and I have plans. We have to be up at 7:00 and be ready by 10:00. I’ll tell you all what we did next week (If I remember. I think my brain went on vacation as soon as the girls started summer break.) I would also like to wish you all a happy Solstice. May your coming year be fruitful and full of blessings. I think I will close with that wish because it is already much later then I planned on being when I started. So until next time, Sheila K. Watkins Editor: Whispers of a Stone Circle See last page of this newsletter for submission guidelines, forwarding guidelines, where you can subscribe to Whispers and copyright information. ~*~*~*~ Haiku By Moonchilde Are pearls oyster tears? What in the Sea is so sad? Whalesong, perhaps... A lone gleaming pearl -- One earth, ocean, planet, hope... Goddess, immanent. Butterfly flits by - a young girl's giggling laugh; Breezes float them both. ~*~*~*~ Cool Link(s) of the week: Veriditas: The World-Wide Labyrinth Project: http://www.gracecathedral.org/labyrinth/ Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project http://etext.virginia.edu/salem/witchcraft/home.html Includes court records, historical maps, and more. The Mummy Tombs Written for children middle school age and younger, their parents, and teachers, this site provides information about mummies from around the world. http://www.mummytombs.com/ ~*~*~*~ Cooking For Pagans By Kevin Romaine (Sings With Coyotes) What is "Cooking For Pagans?" I was asked, when I proposed to present this topic, what was different about cooking for pagans than cooking for anyone else. Someone immediately quipped, "More of it!" And since one is usually going to be cooking at a campout type of gathering, for a large group that may not have eaten much all day, that is a reasonable assumption. There are, however, many things to consider. A potluck with a theme relating to the ritual might be planned, for instance, or you may want to use seasonal foodstuffs. You sometimes have to allow for dietary restrictions, whether they are based on biological needs or philosophical imperatives. Also to be taken into account is where and when the preparation itself will take place; there is a difference in having the resources of a well-equipped kitchen at your disposal, and an open fire and a cooler at a campground. Sabbat potlucks: I, personally, revel in the opportunity to cook for a large group at a Sabbat gathering; it gives me a chance to operate on a large scale, and you can never make enough of a well-prepared dish. A lot of people these days just don't cook like that, so they stop at the deli section of a grocery store and pick up a tub of something to share. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that! If you don't have time or skill to do it yourself, hire it done. If you want the food you contribute to have a personal touch, though, and be freshly made, there's nothing for it but to do it yourself. It's also cheaper, especially if you need to have a lot of it. What are Sabbat-specific foods? A lot of times, people make or bring something that's a favorite of theirs, but isn't necessarily related to the traditions of that Sabbat. Gerina Dunwich, in Wicca Craft, has a nice list of foods for each Sabbat. “Imbolc: Foods, which represent growth, such as edible seeds, poppy, seed breads and cakes, and herbal teas. Spring Equinox: Hard-boiled eggs, honey cakes, the first fruits of the season, and milk punch. In Sweden, waffles are a traditional springtime food. Beltane: Red fruits, herbal salads, red or pink wine punch, and oat or barley cakes. Summer Solstice: Fresh vegetables, summer fruits, pumpernickel bread, ale and mead. Lammas: Homemade breads (wheat, oat or corn), barley cakes, nuts, wild berries, apples, rice, roasted lamb, berry pies, elderberry wine, ale, and meadowsweet tea. Autumn Equinox: Corn and wheat products, breads, nuts, vegetables, apples, roots, cider, and pomegranates. Samhain: Apples, pumpkin pie, hazelnuts, Cakes for the Dead, corn, cranberry muffins and breads, ale, cider, and herbal teas. Winter Solstice: Roasted turkey, nuts, fruitcakes, caraway rolls, eggnog and mulled wine.” Can anyone find the common thread to these foods? They are mainly foods available in northwestern Europe. In my limited experience, however, anything goes for Sabbat potlucks. Esbats: For esbats, the Full Moon ritual, we introduce the main reason food is served during and after rituals. Food and drink are excellent for grounding after energy work, and also to restore vitality to the body. An esbat often involves serving the so-called "Simple Feast" after the ritual work is done as a part of the ritual itself. The Cakes-and-Ale or Cakes-and-Wine may be the elaborate affair at a large public gathering or in a well-established coven, with cakes especially made for it, or, for a solitary, a cup of wine and a Twinkie! At events that include children or people who do not drink alcoholic beverages, fruit juice or cider may be served. Dietary considerations: There are many people who have biological limitations on what they can eat and others with self-imposed philosophical restrictions. For those who have to be careful about their consumption of sugars, dairy products, gluten and other foods, know what is in the food you share, and be prepared to answer questions about it. They are not being rude; for them it is a matter, perhaps, of life and death, or at least severe discomfort. Other people choose not to eat certain things, and in an inclusive society as pagans strive to maintain these points of view should be respected. The range goes from people on a no-carbohydrate diet to raw foodists, who eat nothing cooked or prepared. For instance, when I had thought about it a bit, I realized that gazpacho is an entirely Vegan dish, in that it has no animal protein or fat whatsoever. For the solstice this year, I have chosen a dish, Choucroute Garni that has a lot of meat! Campsite cookery: Since a lot of pagan gatherings take place at campgrounds, if you plan to cook your contribution there, you should develop your open-fire cooking skills, think about some cast iron cookware, and have a big cooler! I get razzed about my large collection of cookware, but I use most of it, and it is at the service of those who may need it. Menu choices for outdoor cooking should take into account the open-air nature of your kitchen, the time it takes to prepare, and the fact that you may not have electricity at your campsite. Water is also a concern, as I do a lot of "wet" cooking, and I bring a couple of large containers, one with a spigot for ease of use. I also like the taste of my own water better than that which is available at campgrounds. Conclusion: Given the diverse nature of the pagan community, one can expect to find all sorts of taste sensations at an outdoor gathering, the culinary desires of a hundred or more people all swirling together in a gustatory maelstrom, part of the experience of cooking for pagans. ~*~*~*~ Announcement(s): this place reserved for announcements and press releases I find of interest. I’m pretty lenient about what I place in here but please no Spam that’s been around the world so many times everyone has it memorized. I will consider books release announcements, local and national event announcements, and noteworthy news applicable to those in the pagan community among other things. Thank you. Sheila ~*~*~*~ Writer's Biographies: Moonchilde says about himself: I'm male, 47, married for 21+ years. My wife and I rent a house in South Florida from 6 cats. I found the Wiccan path about 8 years ago. Sings With Coyotes /Kevin Romaine lives in rural Iowa. He is a well-regarded reader of the Tarot and crystal ball. He likes cooking for Pagans, sews his own and others' ritual garb, and is the organizer of BBMMDM for 2002. Sheila K. Watkins knew from the time she was 15 that she wanted to be a writer but did not really start writing until she entered college where she worked on her college newspaper and also worked as the editor of the feature section for one semester. She was also introduced to the love of writing poetry at this time. Fortunately for all of us most of the poems have been lost to the world of men. After college she worked several jobs during the next few years but none included writing. It wasn’t until after both of her children had started school in 1998 that she went back to her love of putting words on a computer screen. Her first submission was accepted by publication by the IOWAN newsletter and it started her on the path of truly honing her work. In October of 2000, she founded and became editor of Whispers of a Stone Circle. ~*~*~*~ Submissions are always welcomed and can be made to: Zeliziw@netins.net In submitting materials writers are agreeing that if accepted I may post them in the newsletter and on the web page (whenever I finally get back to work on it.) Works submitted must be the writer’s own work and they must still retain the copyright OR it must be verifiably public domain. Works can have been published before but please nothing that has been around over and over again. Copyright remains in the author’s possession. The Author also realizes that they will not be paid. (If I had money I would be hosting this on something other then Yahoo.) If a submission is accepted, I will check for punctuation, capitalization and spelling in submitted articles. I will fix minor errors if they are present. I will NOT reword things (except for an occasional “an” for “a” and vice versa.) Poems are published as submitted. Forwarding information: If you chose to forward this newsletter, do so in its entirety, including copyright and contact information. People may subscribe to Whispers of A Stone Circle at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WhispersOfAStoneCircle/ All articles, poems, etc, except where noted are copyrighted by the writers and are used with permission. They are not to be republished without the express permission of the writers. Contact information may be obtained by contacting the editor of Whispers of A Stone Circle at Zeliziw@netins.net Copyright (c) 2002 Sheila K. Watson. All Rights Reserved