Dance before the Bonfire (Beltane)
Another summer stretches before us,
fertile and heady
The faeries are out to play
dancing along with everything and everyone else
Dance!
Dance before the bonfire
and celebrate the brimming fertility
of another year
Let it spill over
and crackle into the fire
Let us be blessed
and let our fruits ripen and be harvested
(not wither and die
nor rot forgotten)
Let us drink thirstily of the nectar of the gods
and feast hungrily upon food, love, and kindness
Let us also feed our wants and desires today
happily and carefree
Let us celebrate the miracle that is existence
and marvel at the wonder that is life:
remembering that the smallest acorn
can become the tallest tree
Let us dance
Dance!
Dance before the bonfire
Dance around the maypole
Dance together, laughing
Dance through life and death and life again
Dance under the budding trees and around the blooming wildflowers, dancing in the wind
Dance as fawns and baby birds and newborn stars all watch, dancing
Dance as the gods smile down upon us, dancing too
Dance before the bonfire!
Ashley Ravenwood, finished 3/8/97
