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Once upon a time I made a Journey to the Isle of Iona in Scotland. In fact I made a lot of trips there because Iona is one of my heart's homes. But this journey was special, though short, partly because it was a particularly Interesting Time in my life and partly because it seemed improbable that I'd ever get to go back to Iona again. So, it seemed that I needed something I could carry with me for a memento, though I'm in no danger of forgetting the sacred isle.
While there I looked at all the pebbles on the beaches (well, nearly all). None felt right. The summer flowers were considered and some seeds falling from the tiny purple ones on the nunnery wall were gathered to plant at home, but that wasn't it either. After looking in all the gift shops at everything, the right choice seemed to be a ring — a silver Celtic ring with endless knotwork on it. Good symbolism. It was a typical touristy bit of jewelry, nothing special, inexpensive, but it breathed "Iona..." And it fit. I was so pleased to have found it! Goal achieved!
I wore the ring as I left the island. Ferry to Mull, bus to Craignure, ferry to Oban... and then rebellion set in. No more public transport for now! I wanted to savor the back country roads on the way back to town. So, I walked up the hill and out on the back road from Oban, a light pack with just a change of clothes on my back, some fruit and water, and a heavy heart. I'd driven it before but I wanted to walk it this time. There were plenty of back roads to get me to Balloch at the foot of Loch Lomand and then back to Glasgow by bus through all the industrial and crowded area. I'd decided to accept rides if offered and to hitchhike when it got late in the long summer day, but to walk as much as possible while still getting back on time.
Walking felt good. Resting when needed and munching apples bought in Oban, I made my way along single track roads peacefully and happily. This part of Scotland has an abundance of ancient stones and monuments — cairns, standing stones, many and varied stone circles. My route took me past a small circle that I'd never seen before. These stones were smallish and low in the grass, the circle not more than nine feet or so across, and not very visible from the road unless one happened to be walking slowly and looking at everything. It seemed to be radiating a strong call to come closer, to linger in the circle for a while. I don't turn down enticements like that. Over the knee-high drystone wall I went, and stopped just outside the circle, waiting until certain that I was truly welcome into the center.
At last, sitting in the circle's center I began to feel a subtle pressure to do something. There was, without words, a request — not for something for the Powers of the circle, but to do something that would be helpful to me. I sat and listened meditatively. Reluctantly, but bit by bit, I got it that it would be appropriate and healing for me to put all my past, especially including my time on Iona, into my ring — and bury it in the center of the circle, a small place of power in the network of light that runs from circles to megaliths, to cairns, to standing stones, to whatever else has been rooted in Earthmother with healing intentions.
I. Did. Not. Want. To. Do. This. No way!
Just leaving without gifting anything to the circle seemed quite impossible. Nothing else I had seemed really acceptable. There were disgraceful tears and pleadings. Now I am older and far more experienced, but then, in my forties, I hadn't fully learned that the only sacrifice that matters is oneself, from the heart. It wasn't about the ring; it was about me — the ring was only a holder of energy — and I didn't know that. Finally, I let myself be aware of how much love there was in this asking. It felt unbounded. This was all intended to help me, to strengthen me.
I needed for the ring to be there, just there and nowhere else. Not on my finger but in the earth. I can't say that I believed this or that it made any sense, but it felt right so I dug a small hole at the center of hard-packed earth of the circle. It wasn't very deep, but there was nothing around to use to help in digging. It was only a couple of inches down. With a trickle of tears, the ring went into the earth from which it had once come, was covered over, and the earth tamped well down above it so the digging left no mark. Left to my own devices I'd probably have piled a cairn of large stones over it, but that was gently refused. Someone smiled at the idea, but I wasn't in an appreciative nor grateful mood.
Back on the road, I turned back once to say a small and wordless prayer for what I'd done to be right. It felt like the light had gone out of the day, though the sun still shone. I'd had enough. It was easy to walk to the nearest main road and hitch a lift to Balloch. There I had a fish and chips supper while looking out over Loch Lomand. Walking toward the nearest bus stop to catch the bus to Glasgow, the sun was in my eyes. I almost ignored the glitter of something in the gutter, but the second or third time it sparkled, I became curious and stepped into the street to fish it out of the mud. Wiping off the mud, I stood there transfixed. Silver gleamed and there in my grubby hand was a muddy silver ring — out of the earth and cobblestones of the road.
The muddy ring was the right size and slid easily onto my finger, but the design was different from the Iona ring. Instead of the typical Celtic pattern of endless knots, this ring had stars and moons raised from a dark bed, like a night sky. I had a vague thought of turning it in at the local police station, but though it had gone on so easily it wouldn't come off my finger. This woke me up out of my shocked daze enough to realize that this ring was for me — a gift from the muddy earth and the fae. With stars and moons in the night sky — something that connects all the sacred spaces of the world, wherever we may be. (Now, of course, I'm seeing that as a symbol of non-local consciousness as well as of faery, but then I only saw the faery sky.)
Some years after receiving the ring but many years ago now, I sat in a barrow in England a few miles from Bath. Sitting there, wearing my faery ring, I made an inner journey to see what was wanted of me at that time. Instead of being asked for things, I was shown gifts. One of them came to me then, but others were in reserve for later. One of the "later on" gifts was a small ginger cat, who was described as "the firecat". The sword I was given then was placed in my spine, the hilt across the hips. Invisible. Mysterious. Strengthening. The cat stayed asleep in a small curl in a niche in the barrow wall.
Then, years later I learned about Richard's ring. I was telling the story of my ring on Facebook and Richard, a real life friend as well as a Facebook friend, said, "You won't believe this... Oh, I guess you will. I think I have a ring just like that." He took a photo and posted it on Facebook. And, yes, it's like mine. Of course, I asked him how he got it. I'd never seen another one anywhere. Now I wonder how many people have them and how they happened to get them?
It seems that he was in college at the time, having a difficult time figuring out where he was going in life and why. Especially in question was his spiritual path. One day he was lying on his back on the grass in the sunshine. He felt something under his back, poking at him. When he looked to see what it was, it was the silver ring, deep in the grass. It, too, was a gift from EarthMother, and of course, it fit him perfectly. The same stars and moons on the night sky. Earthmother and the fae. This was the message he needed about his spiritual path.
The word "pagan" comes from a Greek word meaning "arising from the Earth" — but you knew that, didn't you?
At that time, I'd just recently found my ring among some old jewelry that had been packed away for several years — this was why I was writing about it and thinking about what it meant to me now. Richard hadn't been wearing his either at that point. We both wondered, really, what were we thinking? We wanted to have them on all of the time. I've been wearing mine since.
Today, sitting here writing, my miniature ginger cat, Marzipan, is on my knee. She watches me type, her eyes wise and wide and deep — like moons. Marzipan was born to be a star. Everyone who meets her knows that she is a natural star, a tiny, fiery cat of creativity and wisdom and mischief. Right now, she is sitting on my knee, but sometimes when I'm typing, she puts one paw on my hand. It's probably not a co-incidence that she usually puts it right on my faery ring of moons and stars, is it?
Copyright ©2016 and ©2019 by Jessica Macbeth. All rights reserved.
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Jessica Macbeth
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