In 2018, when I was in the process of moving from California to Virginia, I felt an impulse to start the first Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids course. Perhaps it was because I was leaving the life that I had lived in California for twenty-five years & was setting out on a new quest. Actually, it was a journey back home to bury my father and return to my childhood home. I was also leaving my adult children behind, my ex-husband and many friends. You can imagine that during a cross country move that takes a week to drive, material went 6missing and I felt I had neglected part of my education. I ordered the CDs and listened again. It was in the second listening that I began to feel the material land. Now, living in the Blue Ridge mountains and surrounded by a vast expanse of trees, I have begun to integrate the teachings.

The OBOD Awen symbol has more meaning for me now, and perhaps there are layers that have yet to reveal themselves. There are many interpretations of the Awen symbol in the Celtic world, depicted as three lines, three dots and three circles; the three within three within three is a subtle clue. The triple threes may represent: the underworld (Annwn), the middle world (Abred), and the upperworld (Gwynfyd) encircled by the realms of Ceugant. The three lines represent three points or rays of light, symbolic of the triple deity (Man, Woman and Child/Balance); also Body, Mind and Spirit; and Love, Wisdom and Truth. The Awen is an invitation into our own True Nature, which reveals itself as and when we are ready. Perhaps listening to the first set of teachings inspired the move away from crowded Central Coast California and into nature. It’s actually a home coming for me as I return to the mountain I grew up on. There is a natural romantic poet within me that enjoys dancing free along flowing streams and rivers. My emerging wild-self demands to find a unique expression.

What I have incorporated from my OBOD, Celtic Shamanism and poetic studies is a rather eclectic and creative mix that combines naturally with my own creative musings. I am an author, and I am simply inspired by the path of the Bard. I have been very internal with my creative process, writing and publishing books, but I have yet to open to the oral recitation of stories and poems, the acting, singing and dancing that makes a true bard. Perhaps it is coming.

I never meant to undertake Druidry as a religion or a study, and yet it makes more sense to me than the rest of the world, and so a new (and ancient) way opens. All I can say now is that I am very happy to have deep roots in an age-old tradition, even if we have had to dream the way of the Druids back into being. To me Druidry seems necessary during this time of shift and change.

As the Awen landed within me, the I sensed three circles, three lines and three dots, indicative of the sacredness of the threes, inviting a Sacred Grove to open. Clearly, three is a magic number, and this is my third poetic initiation. The Gwers and the Esteddfods influenced my storytelling repertoire. Also, from what I have heard from astrologers, poets and mystics, the three circles are the sign of the incoming Aquarian Age.

It seems perfect that I completed the Bardic ceremony on December 18, 2020, just before Winter Solstice and the birth of a new era of love, peace and harmony.