The Sisterhood of the Flowing Skirts

Yesterday there was a gathering. 5 women in flowing skirts set out for a day of communing with the spiritual and communing with nature. The Love Goddess wore a rainbow skirt, the Earth Mother wore ocean blue, the Great Seer wore deep purple, the Healer wore black and white, and me, the Goddess in Transition wore cattail brown. Together, we were the Sisterhood of the Flowing Skirts. Together, we meditated, laughed out loud, soaked up the blue sky and changed the world.

We spent the day at the largest Spiritualist community this side of nowhere, known as Lily Dale. This is where seekers from all over the world come to be healed and helped by registered Mediums doling out messages from the Great Beyond. We went with no expectations and no needs. We followed the rhythm of our skirts and simply flowed from one locale to the next. We shopped for incense and tumbled stones. We walked with faeries through the woods. We had a picnic of snow peas and cherries and chocolate-covered sunflower seeds on the grass by the lake. We walked the labyrinth. We talked with trees. We fed the resident cats.

And then, we broke the rules. If there is a sacred spot in Lily Dale, it is The Stump. Tucked away in a small, old-growth forest lies the remains of the original platform on which Mediums would perch and transmit messages from dear departed Uncle Fred or Grandmother Mary. The Stump, more than 120 years later, is still the site of twice daily message services for any who stop by and sit in the pews. The Mediums no longer perch on the Stump, but pace back and forth in front of it while speaking. The Stump is now encased in cement. The Stump is now off limits to any and all. Except for... one divine half hour in the late afternoon on an obscure Monday in July when the Sisterhood of the Flowing Skirts ascended the 3 steps to the top of the Stump and claimed it.

The energy transmitting through the cement from the well-loved Stump was palpable, powerful and filled with joy. It made me giggle. It felt as if that energy could heal anyone who touched it. We held hands and closed our eyes and drew the energy into our bodies. We prayed for the awakening of every woman in the world to the sacredness of her own being. We prayed for the healing of planet earth. For a time, we were all rooted to that Stump, unable to even think of climbing down. Mesmerized by the vibrations. Loath to break the spell.

No one took notice of our rule-breaking Sisterhood. We were not scolded or chastised or evicted. We were invisible to all, except for the crows, while we giggled and swooned and prayed. While we flowed and followed our instincts. While we stepped boldly forward to change the world.