The Beltane Earth Day

What is real and what isn't? A writer has only one well from which to draw, and that is the sum of her or his knowledge and experience. The labyrinth is real. The rest is as you wish... Thanks to the Right Rev. Rumple Foreskin and Deacon Moon for generous reading and kind feedback.

The Beltane Earth Day

Earth Day Erin stood next to her husband in church, singing about the tree of life. She reflected that most people had never heard of Unitarian Universalism, and if they had, UUs were generally considered to be left-wing, heretical, half-godless, shoulder-shrugging, question-asking wacko nut-flakes, and this could be true. You pretty much had to figure out the divine (if any) for yourself. So it was that she stood in a room full of atheists, Buddhists, witches, dancers, reformed Catholics, physicists and grocery shoppers.

She quit smiling at the next hymn. The song about the wheel of life recognized the birth and celebration of a new infant. From three rows back, her ears picked up the quiet tears of the woman who'd lost her son. This year Jamie would have been ten. Erin's throat constricted and her own eyes filled. A hot drop of saline fell to the page. Mike put his arm around her and kept the song going: "And I believe in life, and in the strength of love. And I believe, that to question, is an answer."

Everybody sat down and the minister got up to speak. Alanna was in her late fifties with kind eyes and lines in her face. Today was Earth Day, a very special day for all these tree-huggers. She gave the factual kind of talk that often prompted accusations about Unitarianism being from the neck up, about how Earth Day was rooted in the ancient Beltane celebrations. This was the time of year when people everywhere celebrated spring. It was a time to be thankful for the return of life after the long seemingly-dead winter.

Spring meant fertility. Though the church did not practice a traditional Beltane ritual, they did plant trees and dance the Maypole. The people adopted a highway to clean up, and feasted through the afternoon. Women wore wreaths of flowers in their hair. Cubs fans turned their ever-hopeful eyes toward Arizona. And people came from miles around to walk the labyrinth.

The sermon finished and Erin and Mike went down to the crowded potluck. They spent a pleasant afternoon in the company of friends before heading home, where Erin announced her intention to take a nap before the evening ritual.

As she slept, she dreamed.

Beltane Sorren and her sisters witnessed the signs of spring thaw, and their hearts were glad. They picked wildflowers to make dye. The men of the village sheared the fat winter coats from the sheep. Children were given the job of picking out the burrs before the wool was carded and spun. The new fibers were washed in spring water and dyed in the wildflower dyes. These would make the colorful festival ribbons that would grace every family's door.

Along the hillside, the bonfires were prepared. The men cut a tall straight tree from the forest and carefully removed its limbs. This would make the Maypole, that phallic symbol of fertility. Among them was Dafydd, Sorren's intended. The ritual gave him a sense of grounding. He and the other men dug the depression where the tree would go. They went about their work with a sacred lust, for the placing of the tree in the opening would symbolize the coupling of the god and the goddess. Later, as the sun was setting, the women and men would dance the traditional dance, weaving colorful ribbons in a pattern around the staff. They would each drink the ritual three glasses of wine. And then, the women would choose their partners, and complete the heart of the celebration.

Sorren could see Dafydd working in the distance. His eyes were green and his hair was dark blond. She gave a shiver of anticipation. His height and strength made her go weak in the knees. Moreover she approved of the way he respected the earth and its creatures. He never slew a deer unless he had a clean shot, so the animal did not suffer. He took different paths through the forest, so as not to wear a trail. The way he walked respectfully on the earth made her think he would be a good father. And a child gotten by the Beltane fires was loved and celebrated by the entire village. She hoped, fervently she hoped, his seed would find fertile ground in her womb tonight.

Earth Day Erin woke to find herself aroused, dreaming of the ancient fertility rites. While the reaction brought her physical pleasure, she was a little sad at the same time. She and Mike had been trying without success to have a child. Every time the negative symbol came up, her heart broke a little more. The doctor said there was nothing wrong, there was no physical reason for either of them to be infertile. Maybe, she thought, tonight's ritual would call the divine power. Maybe Hecate would have mercy and make her a mother.

Despite her feelings of heat and wet, she did not call her husband to her side. She wanted to wait until the moon was full. Then the magic would be strongest. This was one of two nights each year when the veil was thin between this world and the next, the other being Samhain. Unlike Samhain, which connected with the dead and the past, this night connected with life and possibilities. If ever a night were full of magic, this was it. After the labyrinth walk, she and her husband would make love in the moonlight. There would never be a better time for her body to receive him.

She took a warm bath and gave her body hair a fresh shave. A few drops of oil in the water made her skin moist and smooth. She washed her hair under a long hot shower, luxuriating in the preparations. Then she donned a silk robe and sat quietly in the bay window. As she combed her hair dry, she meditated on the new green leaves. The wind made its rushing noise through the trees.

After a light supper, Erin put on her favorite ritual dress. It buttoned left of center from neck to hem. The silver acanthus leaf buttons made a shining trail over her left breast and down her hip. The dark purple fabric would blend with the twilight. It draped and swished when she walked. She wore no undergarments. That would be out of keeping for the entire celebration.

Beltane Sorren and her sisters and friends ate at the women's table, whispering and stealing sly glances at the men. They smiled and talked about whom they would be with. She knew Dafydd would be her first. After that, chance would decide. This was important to reflect the balance of human will and divine will. The earth did not choose what seeds fell where upon her bosom, yet they grew strong and beautiful. So too, once each year, the village honored the Fates. The people would reverberate with the earth and give their will to the goddess and god.

She only hoped she would not couple with Marrock, the surly dark-haired boy who frightened her a little. He never seemed to have much to say and what words he uttered were terse. He was the smith's apprentice. His arms were as hard as the metal he fashioned and his face was often smeared with soot. Tonight for the festival he had bathed and put on clean clothes -- he was almost handsome in his dark way. When she caught him gazing upon her, she quailed and turned away.

The sun began to set.

Earth Day Erin and the other twelve gathered in their circle. They chanted each other's names in welcome. Then they sang the circle into being:

"We are a circle Within a circle With no beginning And never ending."

Around and around they went, their voices rising higher as the sun went down. The chalice was lit. The leader thrust the ritual knife into the cup. From the center flame, each woman lit her candle. Then, shielding the flames with their hands, they walked out to the labyrinth.

Their long robes whispered against their skin. The stones of the eleven circuits gleamed in the dusk. Aurora entered the labyrinth first, her pace slow and deliberate. When she was three paces in, the next woman entered the sacred space. Erin shivered and a little sweat trickled under her arms. In a few minutes, she would be next.

Beltane The third cup of wine went down easily. The men set the bonfires ablaze. They lifted the pole and thrust it into the earth, and a full-throated shout went up from the crowd. In the dusk, the dancing began: boy, girl, boy, girl. They sang the ancient song and plaited the ribbons around the pole. At first the dancers were in a large circle, holding the ribbons out long and wide. Slowly they wove in, closer and closer with every step. As the ribbons intertwined, it became impossible for their bodies not to brush against one another.

The fire of desire kindled in their bodies. Sorren's breast brushed against one man's arm. A few steps later, hips collided. Ever closer the young adults' bodies wound together. At last they were as tight up against the giant phallus as they could be. Sorren landed face to face with Dafydd. She looked in his eyes, her face flushed. She could see the color in his cheeks. His manhood pressed against her belly. Hand over hand in a clockwise pattern the ribbons were tied off at the base. As their turn came to let go the ribbons, the couples embraced.

Sorren's heart beat wildly in her chest. The place between her legs grew hot and slick. The ritual wine cast aside her inhibitions. Her lover embraced her tightly and found her mouth with his. He tasted of wine. The sweet, gentle man she knew began to melt away. His primitive desires rose to the fore. Dafydd's hands ran firmly over her breasts. He began to tug at her bodice.

Earth Day Erin's spirit begin to float. The methodic walking pulled her into the trance. The flames the women carried burned all the more brightly as the night became darker. Their steps wove the historic pattern: the four quadrants of the labyrinth carried them in and out, back and forth. Just as you thought you were approaching the center, there would be a turn, and you would be at the perimeter again. The twists and turns contributed to her feeling of levitating.

Six women were in front of her, six behind. Thirteen years she had known them. The center flower came close. Her heart thumped hard as she approached the magical spot. The first of the six women entered, stood in the center, and raised her hands and face to the sky. She turned to her left, and stepped into the first of the six petals. The second woman did the same. She took her place, clockwise, next to the first. The third woman took the third bay. The pattern repeated until the six women created the inner ring.

It was Erin's turn to enter. She was sweating profusely now. Her vertigo nearly caused her to stumble as she entered the hub. In three steps she was at the midpoint of the circle. She was surrounded by women facing outwards, all looking toward the rim. Their holy power hummed around her. Their hands lifted. Erin fell to her knees. With no conscious decision, she began to unbutton her dress. Down went the silver buttons. Just past her hips, the garment slid from her body. It cascaded in a soft heap of twilight on the ground.

Then she fell backwards into the soft darkness. A rushing dark fog filled up her mind. Her naked form lay open to the night.

Beltane Dafydd and Sorren swiftly finished undressing each other. They were one couple among many, scattered around the bonfires. He guided her to her hands and knees and knelt behind her. Her breasts swung down, her nipples erect with lust. He guided the tip of his phallus to her entrance and pressed into her slippery flesh. Sorren gave a wild cry of joy at the penetration. They began to move. He hung onto her hips as he joined with her.

Sweat poured from their bodies, as much from the heat of the bonfires as from the animal act. In the reddish orange light they grunted and hissed their basic instinct. Twenty feet away, another couple did the same. The man was on top of the woman. Up on the breast of the hill, in another union, the woman rode the man. Couple by couple, they fulfilled the Charge of the Goddess. They knew they would do so three times, to make the ritual complete.

Erin thought she was having a dream. Her genitals buzzed and she could feel a sticky fluid leaking onto her thighs, as if she had just had sex. She sensed a mouth on her nipple. Then she became aware of the body connected to the mouth. A man was kneeling by her side. Instinctively she put her hand to the back of his head, urging a firmer touch. Just as she did so, another hot breath panted at her other nipple. The panting soon became a tongue, licking her peak. Two hands held her breast at the ready. The mouth descended and began to suck. Erin moaned her pleasure. Somehow she knew they were calling her milk, engaging in some kind of fertility ritual.

Then something warm and hard brushed between her legs. She opened her eyes just as the third man thrust his staff inside her. She cried out. This was no dream! She writhed in fear and abundant sexual pleasure. She felt drugged, as if she had drunk wine. The men on either side of her laid their hands on her inner thighs, keeping her legs apart. The man on top of her looked strangely like her husband, but in the firelight and through the haze of her dizziness, it was hard to tell.

Again came a flash of understanding. Their actions were not rape, but ritual. This was some kind of worship, some kind of rite. She knew they would plant their seed in her as a sacred act. She knew they were trying to get her with child to fulfill the cycle of life. This was the cycle she had sung about just a few hours ago. The singing seemed like a faraway echo. This was the real thing.

Dafydd thrust hard and Sorren shuddered at the impact. His yell rang in her ears as he planted his sperm deep inside her body. Her own body spasmed with pleasure, a pleasure so hard she fell into blackness.

Earth Day Mike anticipated that his wife would be late at the ritual, so he went on to bed. This was something they did every year. He figured she would join him when she got home. He lay awake for an hour, reading erotica to put himself in the mood. He looked at pictures of women with their knees wide apart, women touching themselves, women taking men in their mouths. He rubbed his length lightly, for pleasure, but saved himself for her. Finally he turned off the light.

When he awoke, Erin lay beside him. He hadn't heard her come in. In the moonlight he looked her beautiful face. Somehow she looked younger in the soft glow. His brow wrinkled. Something about her looked off, he couldn't quite place it. Had she done her hair differently for the labyrinth? He touched her cheek and she moaned softly. He would swear her face looked a little thinner.

His hand moved down to caress her breast. It seemed firmer to his touch, like that of a younger woman. He knew she loved to be awakened with lovemaking. He also enjoyed it, feeling and watching her awareness blossom in his arms. With a tender lust he began to kiss her face. She stirred and groaned a little more. He captured one breast in his mouth, sucking gently at first, then harder. Again, very faintly, something seemed different. Her taste was a little sweeter, or perhaps, a little earthier.

Mike put his hand between his wife's thighs and startled. This woman could not be his wife. Erin kept her pubic hair shaved. This woman looked almost identical to her but undeniably was not. Furthermore, unless he was much mistaken, this lady had already been with a man tonight. His fingers detected plenty of sticky fluid. As he probed her sex, she moaned and started to come awake.

Beltane The men on either side of Erin held their cocks in their hands. Slowly they stroked themselves. With their free hands they caressed her body. Their fingers circled her nipples and trailed over her torso. She reveled in the attention. The man on top of her pumped his hips faster. She called out as he filled her. He grunted like an animal and stabbed her again. The pleasure was overwhelming, giving her a floating sensation. "Mike," she whispered her husband's name. The man who looked like him touched her face, and pulled away.

Earth Day When Sorren awoke she knew something was wrong. Her body was not in the sweet-smelling grass. She lay on something very soft. What was it? As she opened her eyes, she let out a stifled shriek. Marrock! She spoke the name aloud. Then she looked around in the darkness. The air smelled strange. Where were the others? Where were the fires? Through the window she could see the full moon but something was wrong with it. The stars were too faint, their positions all wrong in the sky. And why weren't they outside?

The dark-haired man looked concerned. She looked at him again. He looked like Marrock, but a little older. This was not the boy from her village. This man's arms and hands were different. His fingers were smooth and free of calluses where he touched her. He said something to her but she could not understand the language.

Mike saw the woman was frightened by her surroundings. "Honey, it's okay, it's me," he said, even though he knew this wasn't his Erin. He saw her eyes fix on the moon. "Do you want to go outside?"

Sorren panicked. Somehow she had passed through the veil to the other side. The god and goddess had seen fit to take her away from her home, away from the Beltane fires. The only element she recognized was a naked man beside her. He had been touching her sexually as she awakened. Maybe Brigid intended for her to couple with him. Maybe this was a sign that she had not given Marrock a chance.

Hesitantly she put her hand in his. With a gentle touch he pulled her from the wide soft pallet. She looked at the moon, she looked at him. It didn't seem like he wanted to hurt her. She followed his naked form down a dark passageway. Her feet stepped on a soft surface. She was frightened but didn't know what else to do.

Beltane Through her drugged senses, Erin saw the men rotate around her. The one who had been holding her left breast knelt between her thighs. He leaned forward and easily slid into her soaking passageway. Through her haze of confusion and sexual bliss, she realized -- or thought -- this was her third partner tonight. His member was bigger than the other man's. She moaned and lay back, receiving him into her body. She was starting to feel sore, but knew the ritual had to be completed. A puddle of fluid soaked the earth beneath her. More seed would spill before long.

Earth Day Mike led the woman into the back yard. She looked relieved to be outdoors. She reached for him, rubbing her hands on his chest and exploring his body. He sensed her need was not only sexual. This was her way of connecting back to some other reality. "Marrock," she said again. He touched a finger to his chest and corrected her. "Mike." She looked at him in confusion, then appeared to dismiss the conversation. She put her arms around his waist.

Naked, they embraced in the moonlight. His cock sprang up against her groin. Her pubic hair was sticky against his tip. He put his hands on her breasts and kissed her, feeling her body respond. She said something. He didn't understand the language but the meaning was clear. The urgency in her voice drove him on. Her foreignness aroused him. He knew he was making love to some ethereal creature, a woman from another plane of existence.

She wrapped her arms around a tree and stuck out her behind in clear invitation. Briefly it crossed Mike's mind that here was a real tree-hugger, that people who called themselves that these days were faint imitations of the genuine article. Her connectedness with the earth, with life itself, was palpable. As he took her he merged with some spiritual incarnation of the earth. He groaned at the feel of her vaginal walls, so velvety smooth and tight — like his wife, or a near twin of his wife.