Imbolc is upon us. The time of the year for cleansing rituals, reflection, and deep rest. . .
I spent the evening weaving corn dollies for the hearth. I will likely burn one or both of these at a summer festival.
I make my corn dollies out of wheat. This year, I found two reasonably priced bundles of wheat on Etsy. (In the past, I’ve purchased at a craft or fiber arts store.) Here’s the wheat just out of the box.
I won’t include many of the details of making corn dollies here. There are all sorts of resources (sites with directions, youtube videos, and tutorials) online. I tend to keep these books handy as I work so that I can check in on directions for weaves and plaits as necessary. But I find the books and patterns distracting from the joy of just following my own whims. . . so, I don’t typically follow a pattern or try to recreate the most iconic forms (unless I’m making a gift or something for sale).
The whole process begins with separating the usable parts of the wheat from the larger stalk. This photo is a little blurry, but you can see the pile of stalk-refuse here. The wheat is then soaked in hot water until it becomes pliable.
Once the wheat is ready to weave. . . I pull out several similarly sized stalks and begin to work it. I simply let the process take shape organically–creating spirals, plaints and knots in an intuitive fashion. Adding pieces to the forms as I go. Last night, I knew I wanted to make a dolly and a house blessing. I knew that I’d have left overs to do a couple of Bridget’s Crosses. But other than that, I was just looking forward to the time away from the computer and national politics.
The smell and feel of the wheat is calming in itself. The opportunity to sink into the making is itself a blessing.
Once the forms have been woven and bound together, they need to dry. Here are the dolly and blessing set out to dry.
The wheat needs to be positioned exactly how you’d like it to look when it’s done–once the wheat has dried, it loses pliability and the stalks may snap if they’re moved. If this were for a more particular purpose, I’d have laid them out on a cork board with stick pins holding the pieces in place until dry. Because these are for me and will be burned this summer, I’m less interested in perfection of form than the organic emergence of a shape that can be charged and meditated upon.
I woke this morning to about an inch of snow on the ground. A lovely coincidental reminder of the season.
The dollies had dried out overnight and were ready to be decorated or hung. I put bows on the dolly and blessing as I had morning coffee. (I used a rafia ribbon, because it is natural looking and burns just like the wheat when they are given for offerings.)
And here is a picture of the crosses made with the left overs.
The night of the 1st, I will say prayers over these and mediate on the spiritual, physical, and house cleansings that are necessary at this time. I will lay out my mantel for the blessings of Bridget’s passing and invite her presence into the house in the tongue of my ancestors. This year’s prayers are for social justice, for wisdom and peace to prevail in our national landscape, and for joy, calm, and balance to bless us all.
May your Imbolc be restful, healing, and meaningful.
Falbhaidh mi an ainme Spioraid,
An riochd feidh, an riochd each,
An riochd nathrach, an riochd righ:
Caora meala ’na mo theanga,
M’ anail mar an tuis.
I will travel in the name of Spirit,
In likeness of deer, in likeness of horse,
In likeness of serpent, in likeness of king:
Dew of honey in my tongue,
My breath as the incense.
–“An Invocation for Justice,” From Carmina Gadelica (revised just a little)
Tree of Many Feathers: 