We need folks to call the quarters, ritualists to bring us a midnight ritual, and kitchen witches to conjure up a magical breakfast. Reply to this email if any of these interest you.

Another opportunity to serve the community and the land we hold our dance on is to help with chopping and carrying a large amount of wood. More details to come on this soon.

Please respond this email if you have any questions. We are so blessed and excited to see you there.

• Feast! We have a potluck feast that goes throughout the day. Please bring a contribution for the table.
  - Bring your feast gear. If you’re not sure what that means Cedar can explain! (We do not have much in the way of disposable feast gear, so please try not to forget your kit.)
  

  
  - We love homemade foods! Please attach a card to your serving dish with the ingredients so that folks can determine whether things will be OK for them to eat.
  - Not sure what to bring? Fruit, especially cut up or small fruit that is easy to eat with one’s fingers is always a great choice. Salads or cut veggies and non-mayo, non-dairy dips and dressings like vinaigrette, hummus, or guacamole are fantastic. Crackers (GF and otherwise) and cheeses are lovely! Cold non-alcoholic drinks in a cooler are a blessing in the heat of the day.

• Merry making! Bring drums, instruments, the lyrics to your favorite pagan chants, costumes, bubbles, juggling props, and anything else you can think of to keep the day fun and cooperative.

• $10 for the Moggi! This helps to support breakfast and other infrastructure needed to keep LongDance going.

• Shade! We have a couple of popups between the coordinators. A few more would be welcome. Bring sunblock too!

• Do not feel like you have to come for the full day! Every newly arriving person brings energy to the dance. Come for an hour, or five, or arrive at sunup and stay until the last rays touch the clouds!

• Children are VERY welcome and bring lightness and energy to the day.

• Please don’t bring dogs. The dogs that live at Sunflower River will likely be present throughout the day and unexpected dogs can add a level of chaos.

• Please keep intoxicants to a minimum in order to maintain presence with the dome of sound and the heartbeat of the drum.

If you have any questions or if we’ve left anything out please respond to this email. See you soon!

Blessed Be!
Steven, Rudy, and the LongDance Coordinators

Round two of this email to correct the date and confirm that LongDance is Saturday June 20, 2026.

The longest day of the year is almost upon us, and LongDance is just around the corner. On Saturday, June 20, we’ll gather once again at Sunflower River, 6911 Isleta Blvd SW, to celebrate the height of the Sun’s power with a full day of drumming, dancing, laughter, connection, and community.

Whether this will be your first LongDance or one of many, this gathering has a way of creating something special. As the Sun reaches its highest point in the sky, we’ll come together to honor the spirits of the land, celebrate the abundance of summer, and call for the rains that nourish us all. The drumbeat becomes a heartbeat. The dance ground becomes a living prayer. Throughout the day we’ll dance, sing, rest in the shade, reconnect with old friends, make new ones, and share in the unique magic of the longest day of the year.

Friday afternoon will be devoted to preparing the danceground, decorating and oiling the dancepole, preparing food for Saturday morning, and setting up the four altars. If you are looking to camp on site, please make arrangements in advance by responding to this email.

One of the most beautiful moments of the day comes before dawn. If you’d like to join the sunrise procession, plan to arrive about 30 minutes before sunrise so we can gather together and drum up the Sun as it rises over the river valley. From there we’ll process to the dance ground, raise the pole, and begin the day-long celebration.

The big drum will continue the sound field until sunset, about 8:30 p.m. Throughout the long day, we’ll drum and dance, sing and act silly, connect with the four altars, socialize (out of earshot), doze in the shade, invite the rain, and experience the full impact of the longest and highest Sun of the year.

A reminder that you do not need to stay all day to participate. While some people join us from first light until sunset, many come for a few hours, leave, and return later. Every drumbeat, every dance, every voice, and every presence adds to the energy of the circle. Come for whatever portion of the day works for you.

Please remember to bring:

• Drums, rattles, and other musical instruments

• Water, sunscreen, hats, and shade if you have it

• A blanket, cushion, or chair for resting and relaxing

• Your most colorful, creative, or outrageous attire

• Snacks and non-alcoholic beverages to share

• Your feast gear: reusable bowl, plate, cup, and utensils to help us reduce waste

• $10 or whatever you are able to contribute to the Moggi.

It is said that the blessings of LongDance multiply with participation. Those who help prepare the ground and stay through the celebration gather a full measure. Those who can only attend for a few hours still carry home plenty. And those who volunteer to take a direction, lead a dance, help with setup, or assist with cleanup may find that the blessings have a tendency to follow them home and linger unexpectedly.

We hope to see you on June 20 - again, confirming it is Saturday.

Love & Blessings,

Steven & Rudy

Round two of this email to correct the date and confirm that LongDance is Saturday June 20, 2026.

The longest day of the year is almost upon us, and LongDance is just around the corner. On Saturday, June 20, we’ll gather once again at Sunflower River, 6911 Isleta Blvd SW, to celebrate the height of the Sun’s power with a full day of drumming, dancing, laughter, connection, and community.

Whether this will be your first LongDance or one of many, this gathering has a way of creating something special. As the Sun reaches its highest point in the sky, we’ll come together to honor the spirits of the land, celebrate the abundance of summer, and call for the rains that nourish us all. The drumbeat becomes a heartbeat. The dance ground becomes a living prayer. Throughout the day we’ll dance, sing, rest in the shade, reconnect with old friends, make new ones, and share in the unique magic of the longest day of the year.

Friday afternoon will be devoted to preparing the danceground, decorating and oiling the dancepole, preparing food for Saturday morning, and setting up the four altars. If you are looking to camp on site, please make arrangements in advance by responding to this email.

One of the most beautiful moments of the day comes before dawn. If you’d like to join the sunrise procession, plan to arrive about 30 minutes before sunrise so we can gather together and drum up the Sun as it rises over the river valley. From there we’ll process to the dance ground, raise the pole, and begin the day-long celebration.

The big drum will continue the sound field until sunset, about 8:30 p.m. Throughout the long day, we’ll drum and dance, sing and act silly, connect with the four altars, socialize (out of earshot), doze in the shade, invite the rain, and experience the full impact of the longest and highest Sun of the year.

A reminder that you do not need to stay all day to participate. While some people join us from first light until sunset, many come for a few hours, leave, and return later. Every drumbeat, every dance, every voice, and every presence adds to the energy of the circle. Come for whatever portion of the day works for you.

Please remember to bring:

• Drums, rattles, and other musical instruments

• Water, sunscreen, hats, and shade if you have it

• A blanket, cushion, or chair for resting and relaxing

• Your most colorful, creative, or outrageous attire

• Snacks and non-alcoholic beverages to share

• Your feast gear: reusable bowl, plate, cup, and utensils to help us reduce waste

• $10 or whatever you are able to contribute to the Moggi.

It is said that the blessings of LongDance multiply with participation. Those who help prepare the ground and stay through the celebration gather a full measure. Those who can only attend for a few hours still carry home plenty. And those who volunteer to take a direction, lead a dance, help with setup, or assist with cleanup may find that the blessings have a tendency to follow them home and linger unexpectedly.

We hope to see you on June 20 - again, confirming it is Saturday.

Love & Blessings,

Steven & Rudy

Breakfast Witch: We have one breakfast witch set to conjure up a meal, but a second would be wonderful. Respond to this email for more details.

Ritualists:

• If you plan to be there first thing in the morning and would like to call a quarter please respond to this email.

• If you are interested in leading a ritual to call the rain and the summer monsoons at solar noon (around 1 pm) please respond to this email. If you have never led a ritual there are many folks who can help and guide you in the process! This is a fantastic way to get started doing group rituals.

Sacred Diggers: A few people are needed before LongDance to dig the ashes out of the fire pit and dig the hole for the pole. Timing can be arranged based on the schedules of the folks who want to help. If you are interested in helping with this please respond to this email.

And speaking of folks stepping up to help keep LongDance going you will start to see emails from Rudy and Stephen in the next few weeks and going forward. As long time LongDancers they are bringing their fantastic energy to LongDance and transitioning into running the event as I begin step back. I’m so looking forward to supporting and showing them the ropes and then seeing where they take the energy of this special event.

I’m excited to see you all on June 20th or sooner!

Love and Blessings,

Hannah

We will need -

• four folks to hold the energy of the quarters by decorating altars and calling quarters during opening

• a ritualist (or a group) to lead the rain ritual in the afternoon

• volunteers to prep breakfast ahead of time and/or serve breakfast, just after sunrise

• there will be a work party the weekend before LongDance with a focus on clearing paths and prepping the danceground.

If any of these forms of service call to you, please respond to this email. Thank you! <3

During the Long Dance of the Summer Solstice

Time

Flows abundantly without measure

From the hand of the Goddess!

Rather than urging us ever onward

toward a deceptive tomorrow, always beyond our reach,

she offers instead

one seamless, full and perfect Day...

of dancing and revelry, of connecting and communing

with the most ancient

and wonderful

Sun!

*

We begin the day-long ritual by processing to the sunrise spot before dawn (5:45 a.m., we recommend arriving by 5:30 am) to drum up the Sun. Then to the danceground to raise the pole in the sunrise ritual, honoring the animal and elemental spirits of this river valley. The heart drum will continue the sound field until sunset, about 8:30 p.m. Throughout the long day, we’ll drum and dance, sing and act silly, connect with the four altars, socialize (out of earshot), doze in the shade, invite the rain, and experience the full impact of the longest and highest Sun of the year.

Friday will be devoted to final preparation of the danceground, decorating and oiling the dancepole, preparing food for Saturday morning, and setting up the four altars. If you are looking to camp on site , please make arrangements in advance.

Because this event is entirely outdoors, masks are not required but are very welcome! Please be respectful of others’ choice in this regard.

Things to bring: Musical instruments for sure, especially but not only drums. A pad, pillow, or blanket to sit on or nap in. Hat and sunscreen. Your own shade if you have any. Outrageous attire or lack thereof, including body paints. Snacks and non-alcoholic drinks to share for sustenance during the long day. Your own reusable feast gear (plates cups etc will no longer be provided when we run out of disposables) .

Oh, yes…and a donation for the Moggi ($10 recommended, no one turned away for lack of funds). This money pays for the maintenance and production of the event as well as for breakfast. Most recently, the heart drum got a new head. Next up are repairs to the hand washing station and the shade structure.

*

The energy of the day will be concentrated on drumming, dancing and calling for rain. We will celebrate the abundant life-giving gifts of the long light of the sun and call for much-needed summer rains. We will sing and dance and keep the sound-field going from sunrise to sunset. We will maintain the sound of the drum to call forth the rolling thunder. If we are fortunate, rain will appear.

Most blessed will be those who come Friday, help with the work, and stay through Saturday evening. Plenty of blessing remains for those who attend part time, or who leave and return again. Thrice blessed are those who volunteer to take a direction or a dance, or come help with set-up Friday or clean up the weekend before.

*

Sunflower River is located at 6911 Isleta Blvd SW. Please park on the shoulder of the road. If you need directions to Sunflower River, please respond to this email.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Love and Blessings!

PS: Feel free to forward and share this email with like minded folks. You can subscribe or unsubscribe at any time through substack.

We found a few things left behind as usual, cat not included. I suspect the sandal has been there since June.

If any of these things belongs to you, please respond to this email and we’ll make a plan to get them to you. Anything not claimed by the Spring Equinox (Ostara) will be donated.

If you want to practice singing and maybe learn a few new songs you might be interested in this upcoming event presented by some familiar faces to LongDance:

See y’all in less than 6 months!

Blessings,

Hannah

The weather will be cold, but the prediction indicates that temperatures will remain above freezing. Dress in layers as it will be warm near the fire.

What to bring:
*$10 for the moggi. (Paypal and venmo options are availaible. The moggi supports the material needs of the event such as coffee, tea, hand and foot warmers, lights for the path, and other incidentals. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.)
*Your feast kit including a cup for warm drinks, a bowl for soup, and utensils. (There are only a limited number of disposables available. Bringing your own fest gear is a blessing to the our mother Earth.)
*Plenty of layers as it may get quite cold, but it will be warm near the fire.
*Potluck food, especially things that can be eaten cold as there will only be limited electricity available and coffee/tea are the priority.
*Drums and other musical instruments to make music through the long night.

Please leave at home:
*Dogs. There are several resident dogs at Sunflower River, please leave other dogs at home.
*Any expectations you have for a party environment. Intoxicants tend to pull participants out of the rhythm and the dome of sound and energy.

A History and Review of Principles

By Tom and Io

June 17, 2009 (revised June 29, 2013)

Genesis and History

Folks affiliated with the Albuquerque New Mexico Pagan Community have gathered to celebrate summer and winter solstices in a Long Dance ceremonial format for close to 40 years. This essay shares the history and lineage of the local Long Dances and reinforces the foundations of ceremonial form and intent that are at its core. May this essay revitalize the circles and its participants, and ensure that the lineage of Long Dance power, grace and beauty continues into future circles for many generations.

In 1971, Tom Erlich, a New York / Taos composer taught an Albuquerque off-campus experiential course titled Music, Magic and Ritual. This experience introduced a group of Albuquerque and Taos residents to the combined concepts of, well, … music, magic and ritual! There was much listening to soundtracks of nature and much drumming. The power of long drumming jams to induce trance states and a sense of psychic integration was a compelling discovery for persons who had grown up in the deadening conformity of mainstream America. Soon the group was celebrating summer solstice drumming jams sunrise to sunset on Carson Mesa west of the Rio Grande Gorge at Taos, and with all night drumming gatherings for winter solstice.

Elizabeth Cogburn, ceremonialist and student of ritual and the Holy Kabala who lives in Taos, was a motivating force behind the solstice drumming and dancing jams and helped focus the group energy. She worked ceremonially with Jean Houston, scholar, philosopher and founder of the Foundation for Mind Research and the Mystery School. Elizabeth elaborated the basic drumming and dancing into a more coherent ritual and trance dance for participants at Jean Houston’s mind and consciousness workshops.

Elizabeth and her husband, a UNM mathematics professor, developed a two-week long summer solstice event attended by as many as 60 participants from throughout the United States. On one occasion the event was held at what is now Crawford MacCallum’s property in Tijeras, the current site of both the summer and winter Long Dance events as we now know them. Our dance ground was established for that event. The cabin, then a three-sided horse barn, was used as the kitchen. The outhouse was constructed to handle the heavy load. Wilderness locations were ideal for the event, and several Long Dance festivals were held in a small, beautiful meadow in Capulin Canyon in the Jemez Mountains, just above the Bandelier National Park boundary. You had to pack everything a quarter mile down Capulin Creek and camp for two weeks. Elizabeth organized the event and served as the ritual master. Bob drummed, danced and ran the kitchen, keeping everyone fed with healthy vegetarian meals.

Elizabeth had a clear vision of the purpose and technique of ritual and trance dance. She insisted on focus and discipline as a means of reaching a state of ecstasy. Several days of mental and ritual preparation were necessary to reach an optimum state of mind for the all-day dance. People found the all-day dance so powerful and rewarding that they decided to go for 24 hours of continuous drumming and dancing. That experience was so compelling that they decided to add another 24 hours of trance dance. A third day was added; then a fourth for a total of 96 hours of continuous drumming and dancing. The event was held annually throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s. Eventually Elizabeth and Bob found that the largish, “national” event required too much organizing and too much energy. They chose to redirect their energies to less spectacular and more private spiritual events.

Crawford MacCallum and Tom Luebben attended a number of Elizabeth Cogburn’s Long Dances. They felt a need for a similar event that did not require a two-week commitment, but still provided members of our community an opportunity to make music and dance, and honor and celebrate the solstices. Our first Summer Solstice Long Dance was held at Crawford’s dance ground. It was a Saturday when the exact moment of summer solstice occurred in the mid to late afternoon of that same day. We stopped dancing and making music at the moment of the actual Solstice. That was mistake. We now honor the sunrise and sunset as the natural and satisfying openings and closings of our sacred space for both summer and winter Long Dance.

Over the course of many seasons these Solstice ceremonies have continued to be held at Crawford’s dance ground or in his home (winter). Crawford McCallum, while still elder, participant, and leader, bowed out of coordinating Long Dance. Kat Yarrow Heatherington has taken up this mantle with great skill and enthusiasm- Thank you Kat!

LONG DANCE Ceremony

The present ritual format of the Long Dances was established by experience and innovation. The circles continue to evolve, but with core principles providing an abiding foundation. Summer and Winter Solstice Long Dances provide two very special places and times of the year when there is enough time to do all the drumming and dancing you crave; to celebrate with friends, family and pagan community the sacred solar holidays. The transformative, ceremonial and magical power of ritual and trance dance is greatly enhanced if all the participants have clear understanding and attunement with the principles and purpose.

Elements of the Circle- The Outline

Altars are built to the four directions and the four elements. The dance grounds (indoor or outdoor) are made into sacred space and the ritual circle boundaries are created. There is the calling of the spirits at the four quarters. The initial change of light to sunrise or sunset is honored with drumming and chanting. At a designated time, the sound and dance field commences. For summer there is the post-dawn ceremony of setting up the dance pole through the acting out of the Zuni Emergence Myth

describing how The People struggled blindly out of the darkness of the fourth world below to finally find the Sun. At two or three o’clock in the afternoon, the hottest part of the day, there is an evocation of the rain god Tlaloc, his consort Chalchihuitlicue and his servants the tlalolques in a petition for rain. Rain magically and inevitably arrives and the dancers are thoroughly soaked and cooled, leading to great rejoicing.

For winter, archetypal myth and story may be enacted overnight, and an outdoor procession, ceremony or sweat lodge may be offered. We dance and circulate around the pole most often deosil, or sunwise (clockwise), a direction propitious for the Druids and other earth-connected peoples, and the direction used to circumambulate all Buddhist temples and sacred sites. As we anticipate the change of light to sunset or sunrise, energy spins and we join in a wild frenzy of drumming and song. This is followed by magical moments of sacred silence, then the joining of voices in the long, long Om. In closing, we ask for silence or song or individual comments in the closing circle, then dismiss the spirits from the center and the four quarters.

The Center, the Container and Focus

The ceremonial circle is a consecrated vessel that holds accumulating energy and magic. It is a cauldron and a sacred container. Therefore, the boundaries of the circle containing the dance ground, altars and musicians should be respected and maintained, until the circle closing and the spirits of the four directions are dismissed. We ask participants to maintain physical and psychic focus within the circle boundaries - that is, on the music, the dance and the ENERGY FIELD as much as possible throughout the event. The more focused everyone is, the more powerful the energy, the magic, trance and synergy experienced by everyone. As the participants focus their psychic energy into the circle and toward the center throughout the time span, tangible energy and magic accumulates and works toward personal and planetary transformation.

Please be aware that distractions, unrelated conversations and unfocussed events within or at the edge of the circle create holes that cause the energy and magic to drain away. Energy and attention should be directed inward to center and accumulate in the circle. Throughout the day, keep in mind the importance of physically, psychically and magically “facing in” to the central energy rather than facing out. Direct your energy in to the sacred space of the circle, rather than dissipating it out to the surrounding cosmos. Sacred clowning, mirth and laughter, the glorious shower and mud bath at the hottest part of day, the wild improvisational chants that may arise at any time - all of these take place within the energy of the event, not outside the circle.

The Summer Solstice Long Dance pole (aka sun dance pole), in the center of our dance grounds, is acknowledged as the axis mundi- the axis of the world. It connects heaven and earth, standing tall pointing toward the summer sun’s zenith. In the Winter Solstice Long Dance, we dance without a literal pole, but we clearly acknowledge CENTER as the Source of being, and the place uniting heaven and earth.

As the dancers of the Summer Solstice focus on the Dance Pole as a Center, so the dancers of the Winter Solstice focus on the space between the Fire and the Evergreen, the Yin and the Yang, fierce energy and receptive creativity. Personal attributes to be nurtured are written on paper and entrusted to the Tree, those to be finished with are entrusted to the Fire.

The Big Drum and the Beat

The largest drum or “Big Drum” sets the beat and provides the carrying wave for all the other drummers and music makers. Experienced musicians and long-dance veterans should control the Big Drum because it is so important to maintaining continuity and cadence. Inexperienced drummers and those unaware of the critical function of the Big Drum should be gently encouraged to dance or play another instrument. With good attention and good intention, they may apprentice with the lead drummer. People who can keep rhythm and understand the Big Drum’s importance should take the trouble to drum it or control it so that it does what it’s supposed to do. Continuity and energy are lost if there is an interruption in the proper functioning of the Big Drum. Smaller drums, percussion, musicians and singers: stick with the beat of the Big Drum. It is extremely important that the Big Drum maintain a steady, uninterrupted beat at a danceable tempo a bit faster than a heartbeat, for as long as possible. This is a trance dance and a meditation. Changes in tempo disrupt the trance and meditation. The steady beat also keeps us together and keeps the energy coherent and spiraling up and AROUND. Dancers. singers and drummers - Keep your attention inwardly attuned as well as outward attuned: listening/watching/hearing/sensing the energies If you find yourself spinning out or spaced out, or lost to your own universe alone - rhythmically or energetically- stop, and then come back to the ONE - come back to the Big Drum.

Time and Timelessness

The Long Dance ritual is transformational, experiential spirituality. In ceremonial Long Dance, musicians and dancers make a clear commitment to keep the dance and sound field for the whole of the longest, most wonderful and magical day (or night) of the year - dawn to dusk in summer and dusk to dawn in winter. Focusing attention and energy into the circle for a whole day or a whole night is a ceremonial form used in the Native American Church peyote ceremony and in many other shamanic and indigenous earth-based circles. It is a form to support and hold transformation and transformative trance. The Long Dance is about creating and maintaining magical, non-ordinary reality for a whole day - the longest day or the longest night. It is not easy. We must take time to create timelessness, to enter trance.

The Solstice holidays (or Sabbats) are the respective longest day and longest night of the year. On winter solstice- the longest night- we link with our ancestors, who drummed and dance to petition for the return the warming nourishing SUN. On the summer solstice we dance and drum to bring the cooling, healing and life-giving rain. In the Long Dance, we drum and dance and sing for personal, tribal and planetary transformation in the magical liminal space of suspended time - timelessness, which begets magic. We sing dance play and pray for the balance of the wheel. Our dance is long, making our magic wider, deeper and bigger than other circles where we give only a few hours.

Plan to come early and stay through closing if you possibly can. If you arrive early (strongly encouraged) you may notice the dancers and musicians “light up” one by one, glowing with energy and happiness after an hour or two as the music penetrates. As you stay longer, the trance takes hold and the anxieties and concerns of the mundane world drop away. The deeper and more focused the collective trance, the more powerful and transforming it is. Those who can be present for the full day or night are heroes and heroines, priestesses and priests of the transformative circle.

Focus and “Spelling” One Another

The circle is not a spectator sport! Nor is it simply a party. It is participatory, shamanic magic, where each dedicated participatory soul serves and co-creates the transformative whole. There should always be a minimum of two or three celebrants keeping the dance and rhythm alive. If only one person is dancing, that one person is stuck maintaining the dance and can’t take a break to rest, drink or eat until another dancer shows up. Same for the lone drummer or drummers! Pay attention to and share your energy with lonesome dancers and musicians – get in and help out. This creates magic! Please also offer water and other sustenance to dancers and musicians on a regular basis. It’s wonderful also to plan ahead to bring special “energy treats” to offer up to one another during the tougher or longer parts of the day or night - such as a chant or dance to teach (one that fits the purpose and rhythm of the circle); fruit, chocolate; cookies; body paints; flowers; other joyful unexpected acts of beauty and service. When energy lags or edges toward chaotic, one can often unify the energy by toning vowels or an OM. This will often create a shift. Please BE attentive that some dancers or musicians will be trancing and more withdrawn, while others more expressively extroverted.

Although people may come and go during the event, and take food, drink and rest breaks, please keep these to a necessary minimum. Don’t space out and forget the circle. Rest if you need to, then please return. Your focus and energy are needed at the event. If you are coming for just a few hours, consider staggering your time across the long day or long night, coming at odd hours when others might not be there. It is hard if 50 people come for the beginning of the night ceremony, and leave en masse, deferring the darker hours for just a few others. Those who come for part still offer their magic and deep contributions and allow those staying longer to take needed breaks for rest & refreshment. A deep, personal commitment to maintain the dance and the sound field for the entire event will be rewarded with a profound sense of well-being and satisfaction.

Intake of alcohol or other inebriating substances detract from circle energy and ceremonial focus! Please refrain! Please don’t bring your pets. They really don’t understand or relate to the event. Children are welcome if not disruptive. A dog fight or a screaming tantrum on the dance ground breaks the trance and dissipates all that accumulated energy and magic. A drunken drummer cannot keep the beat! Come clean and ready to change consciousness by the intent and energy of the dance ground

Commitment to the Core

It helps to have a core group of a dozen or so participants who understand the purpose and the power of the event, and who make a mutual commitment to maintain the field of sound and the dance. This commitment is critical. When the music gets weak and tired, falls apart in the mid-afternoon heat, or energy falters in the wee hours of 3 am, or dancers are scarce, the core group is there to pick up the music, dance if need be, and maintain continuity so that the energy and the magic are not lost. They are there to experience the full power of the trance and the event for themselves, and keep the event going strong for everyone. There is magic in the ritual, and magic in committing to maintain the continuity. We all give this magic to one another in the event and in the circle. This is a very great gift and blessing. Sometimes core participants may even plan shifts ahead, to ensure their personal energy is modulated and coursing strongly at their key hours, in service of the circle.

COMMENTARY

Beth Beaver, June 25, 2013:

Long Dance is one of my favorite celebrations of the turning of the seasons. I step out of my everyday human, civilized world and stand in suspended time marking only the movement of the sun in summer. We live in a land that can be parched and dry this time of year. I come to pray and petition our Earth Mother to water her garden. I felt the mundane cares of my everyday world drop away as I walked down the path and the energy of the vortex created by the ritual drew me closer. As I entered the circle and the drums echoed in my heart and the vision of the people dancing in the circle graced my eyes, I felt myself relax and merge with the ceremony taking place. I began to play my instrument and gently join with the other musical voices present. The music ebbed and flowed, growing strong and sweet. Instruments and voices came and went as the magick continued to weave its tapestry. The dancers moved with the sounds and the rhythm. No one was “thinking,” we were “being”. We moved, sang and played as the vortex swirled around us. The sounds blended without thought or effort. As the sun began to set, there was a sense of anticipation in the air. We gathered and stood in the last rays of the sun. A few instruments and the drum continued to play. We gathered in a circle and began to spiral inward gathering our energy and bringing it to its focal point. As we chanted OM, the vibrations built filling us all and flowing upwards as we sent our prayers and adoration to our Mother. As we began to spiral outwards, we returned to regular time and back into the world. As it is with Long Dance, people don’t really want to leave. We linger a bit noticing how we feel revived and blessed for having shared the experience. We hug each other. We have been part of something each of us helped to create and it has created community. We are blessed. So mote it be!

Hannah

The most important details:
Location: Sunflower River, 6911 Isleta Blvd SW

When: Gather at 4:00 pm, arrive by 4:30 pm to drum down the sun and be a part of the opening talking circle.
*We will continue until midnight when we will have ritual to honor the darkness and welcome the return of the light.
*After that drumming will continue all night and we will drum up the sun in the morning, then a magical breakfast will appear.
*Come and go as you wish throughout the night. Arrive at 4 am if that’s when you awaken. Leave at 7 pm if you like an early bed. Stay all night to bask in the depth of the stars. The path will be lighted with fairy lights to guide you to the Dance Ground. There is no wrong time to attend LongDance.

What to bring:
*$10 for the moggi. (Paypal and venmo options are availaible. The moggi supports the material needs of the event such as coffee, tea, hand and foot warmers, lights for the path, and other incidentals. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.)
*Your feast kit including a cup for warm drinks, a bowl for soup, and utensils. (There are only a limited number of disposables available. Bringing your own fest gear is a blessing to the our mother Earth.)
*Plenty of layers as it may get quite cold, but it will be warm near the fire.
*Potluck food, especially things that can be eaten cold as there will only be limited electricity available and coffee/tea are the priority.
*Drums and other musical instruments to make music through the long night.

Please leave at home:
*Dogs. There are several resident dogs at Sunflower River, please leave other dogs at home.
*Any expectations you have for a party environment. Intoxicants tend to pull participants out of the rhythm and the dome of sound and energy.

Other information:
Site Prep and Wood Moving: We had a VERY successful work party on December 7. Eight folks worked hard and got much of the site prep and maintenance done including cutting up and moving so much wood. Thanks so much to everyone that came.

Breakfast: Robin will be prepping beans, chile, tortillas, and fixins and could use some help with set up and clean up before sunrise. If you plan to be there in the morning and would like to help let us know.

Naps and Keeping Warm:
*We will have a conversation fire again this year.
*There will also be some quiet indoor space for folks to warm up and nap if needed. Bring bedding if you want to lay down inside both the Cottage and Mahazda (the large house). Please keep in mind that folks will be sleeping inside and it isn’t a social space. Both these spaces have resident dogs and one has a cat.
*If you want to set up a tent you are welcome to do so. I’ll likely be at SR starting at about noon on the 20th. Anyone is welcome to come early to get set up, especially if you are up for lending a hand with last minute event set up tasks!

Other cool things: Friday night is the New Moon so we will have dark skies, which is wonderful because we will also be moving in to the peak of the Ursids Meteor Shower. About 5 to 10 meteors per hour will radiate from the constellation Ursa Minor (the Little Dipper), but can appear anywhere in the sky. I plan to do a lot of sky watching and try out my camera’s astrophotography capabilities outside of the dome of sound, light, and movement.

If you have any questions or notice something I left out please respond to this email.

Love and Blessings,
Hannah

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The reason for this email is that there is a lot of wood at Sunflower River that needs to be cut up and moved. It took some coordinating, but we have a date and time when folks can come and lend a hand. Sunday, December 7, at 12 pm at 6911 Isleta Blvd SE we will be cutting and moving wood. Good things to bring with you are work gloves, a water bottle, and a snack. Also, we have one chainsaw, but one more with someone to operate it would make the work go faster. Dress for the weather in warm layers and comfortable shoes. I will put together a big vegan soup for those that want to eat after the work is done. Please join us! Community is built and maintained through shared work and this community especially runs on volunteers. If you have questions respond to this email.

We are less than a month away from Winter LongDance and the magic is building! From Sunset to Sunrise we will drum, dance, and sing to mark the darkest night and welcome the return of the sun. For the next three weeks expect more emails with information on what to bring, what not to bring, and what to expect. We still need more breakfast witches to step up and we need at least four folks to call the quarters at opening. In the realm of Breakfast Witches we are also looking for someone to take on organizing breakfast long term (for the next few years would be ideal) as Robin will be stepping back from that role after Winter LD. If you love breakfast and/or making sure that folks get fed please step up! If you have questions please respond to this email.

Much Love and Many Blessings,

The Myriad LongDance Coordinators

We need folks to call the quarters, ritualists to bring us a midnight ritual, and kitchen witches to conjure up a magical breakfast. Reply to this email if any of these interest you.

Another opportunity to serve the community and the land we hold our dance on is to help with chopping and carrying a large amount of wood that was delivered to Sunflower River earlier this Summer. More details to come on this soon.

Please respond this email if you have any questions. We are so blessed and excited to see you there.

We have once again turned the wheel another notch and this time into Summer. It really was one of the best LongDances in my memory. The day built slowly into a crescendo of afternoon and evening exuberance. The drumming, dancing, singing, ritual, and silliness all wove together into a sacred and beautiful spell.

So many people need to be thanked. Folks really chipped in on the mundane parts from those who made breakfast happen, to everyone who carried or cleaned a potty bucket, to those that helped clean and prep, to the folks who stayed well after dark to put things away and clean up the feast area, and those who stayed over night and helped with the final clean up. Those of you who let me know that you’re interested in making this event go in the future, expect an email from me soon. You all helped this be one of the smoothest running days I’ve had with this event. Thank YOU.

A few items were left behind. Here’s a photo:

If any of these items are yours please respond to this email and we can make a plan for you to get them back. (Sandy, I have your hat and did not include it in the photo. Likewise your water bottle Kidu. If you could both email me we can make a plan.) I also had a couple of folks ask me about items they had lost. Please keep an eye out in your things a rainbow set of silverware in a gray zippered pack and a serving utensil with a bee theme. If you accidentally went home with either of these please get in touch and we’ll figure out how to get them back to their homes.

Finally Winter LongDance will be on the eve of the Winter Solstice December 20th. Hope to see many of you there!

Love and Blessings,

Hannah and the many coordinators of LongDance

• Feast! We have a potluck feast that goes throughout the day. Please bring a contribution for the table.
  - Bring your fest gear. If you’re not sure what that means Cedar can explain! (We do not have much in the way of disposable feast gear, so please try not to forget your kit.)
  

  
  - We love homemade foods! Please attach a card to your serving dish with the ingredients so that folks can determine whether things will be OK for them to eat.
  - Not sure what to bring? Fruit, especially cut up or small fruit that is easy to eat with one’s fingers is always a great choice. Salads or cut veggies and non-mayo, non-dairy dips and dressings like vinaigrette, hummus, or guacamole are fantastic. Crackers (GF and otherwise) and cheeses are lovely! Cold non-alcholic drinks in a cooler are a blessing in the heat of the day.

• Merry making! Bring drums, instruments, the lyrics to your favorite pagan chants, costumes, bubbles, juggling props, and anything else you can think of to keep the day fun and cooperative.

• $10 for the Moggi! This helps to support breakfast and other infrastructure needed to keep LongDance going.

• Shade! We have a couple of popups between the coordinators. A few more would be welcome. If you’re not sure whether to bring yours you can respond to this email to find out if it will be needed. Bring sunblock too!

• Do not feel like you have to come for the full day! Every newly arriving person brings energy to the dance. Come for an hour, or five, or arrive at sunup and stay until the last rays touch the clouds!

• Children are VERY welcome and bring lightness and energy to the day.

• Please don’t bring dogs. The dogs that live at Sunflower River will likely be present throughout the day and unexpected dogs can add a level of chaos.

• Please keep intoxicants to a minimum in order to maintain presence with the dome of sound and the heartbeat of the drum.

If you have any questions or if I’ve left anything out please respond to this email. See you soon!

Blessed Be!
The LongDance Coordinators

LongDance Coordinators

I’m so looking forward to our solstice celebration and I hope you are too. Expect to hear from me a few more times in the next weeks with updates and reminders.

My first reason for writing this evening is that we are still looking for folks to prepare breakfast. If this work calls to you please respond to this email.

Also, here’s a quick update with the results of our polls. First, thank you so much to those that voted! Your input is greatly appreciated.

• Site Prep will be Saturday, June 14 at 8 am. We will go for 4 hours and I’m sure we can get a whole lot done in that time. If you are available there is work for all levels of ability.

• Set Up will be at 9 am on Friday, June 20. There will be plenty of last minute tasks and again all levels of ability are encouraged to come. If there is still work left to do in the evening I’ll be on site starting around 4 pm to wrangle the last minute tasks.

More to come soon!

Love and Blessings,
Hannah, Cat, Lux, Alanna, Jaime, and Robin (the LongDance Coordination Committee) and Sunflower River.

If you can only make it to to LongDance on the 21st and you’ll be there for sunrise we need:
* Folks to make Breakfast.
* Three more Quarter Callers (East, West, North).
Respond to this email if either of these interest you!

If you can help out before the event we need help with: 1) Site Prep and 2) Set Up. I’ve gotten feedback that folks would like to help, but can’t make the times that end up getting set for these work parties. This time I’m asking for feedback on when you can make it. Please fill out the polls below to be included. For a few other ways to be involved make sure to read to the end of this email.

1) Site Prep will be sometime the weekend of the 14th/15th. This is when we clear the paths and make sure the Danceground is ready for frolicking. If you’d like to be involved please fill out this poll: https://doodle.com/group-poll/participate/epLj39re

2) Set Up will be on June 20. This is when we put up tables, tarps, altars, and all the other last minute things before we sleep and then greet the sun. If you’d like to be involved please fill out this poll: https://doodle.com/group-poll/participate/axLr37za

I will be closing both polls Thursday, June 5 at 5 pm.

If neither of these work for you, or if you just want to be more involved here are a few other things to keep on your radar for the future:

• Firewood: We still have wood for Winter LongDance, but it is never too early to get more. I know of a few community members who have land that needs thinning. If you have a chainsaw, a truck, or just love the smell of fresh cut firewood and want to help carry wood please respond to this email or get in touch with any member of the coordination team so we can set up a time.

• Coordination Team: While LongDance has a smaller profile than a lot of other events it still takes coordination. If you’re interested in learning what it takes to make an event like this go, the team has room for expansion. I’ll be ending my tenure as lead coordinator after Winter LongDance 2027. Robin will also be handing off her post as “Stuff Wrangler” at the same time and she is looking for an apprentice who wants to learn the ways of the wrangling. Please come talk to a member of the Coordination Team if you’re interested. We will also have a sign up sheet at the event if you’re interested.

Sunflower River is located at 6911 Isleta Blvd SW. Please park on the shoulder of the road. If you need directions to Sunflower River, please respond to this email.

I’m excited to see you SOON!

Love and Blessings,
Hannah, Cat, (the unforgettable) Lux, Alanna, Jaime, and Robin (the LongDance Coordination Committee) and Sunflower River

PS: Feel free to forward and share this email with like minded folks. You can subscribe or unsubscribe at any time through substack.

We will need -

• four folks to hold the energy of the quarters by decorating altars and calling quarters during opening

• a ritualist (or a group) to lead the rain ritual in the afternoon

• volunteers to help prep and/or serve breakfast, just after sunrise

• there will be a work party the weekend before LongDance with a focus on clearing paths and prepping the danceground.

If any of these forms of service call to you, please respond to this email. Thank you! <3

During the Long Dance of the Summer Solstice

Time

Flows abundantly without measure

From the hand of the Goddess!

Rather than urging us ever onward

toward a deceptive tomorrow, always beyond our reach,

she offers instead

one seamless, full and perfect Day...

of dancing and revelry, of connecting and communing

with the most ancient

and wonderful

Sun!

*

We begin the day-long ritual by processing to the sunrise spot before dawn (5:45 a.m., we recommend arriving by 5:30 am) to drum up the Sun. Then to the danceground to raise the pole in the sunrise ritual, honoring the animal and elemental spirits of this river valley. The big drum will continue the sound field until sunset, about 8:30 p.m. Throughout the long day, we’ll drum and dance, sing and act silly, connect with the four altars, socialize (out of earshot), doze in the shade, invite the rain, and experience the full impact of the longest and highest Sun of the year.

Friday will be devoted to final preparation of the danceground, decorating and oiling the dancepole, preparing food for Saturday morning, and setting up the four altars. If you are looking to camp on site , please make arrangements in advance.

Because this event is entirely outdoors, masks are not required but are very welcome! Please be respectful of others' choice in this regard.

Things to bring: Musical instruments for sure, especially but not only drums. A pad, pillow, or blanket to sit on or nap in. Hat and sunscreen. Your own shade if you have any. Outrageous attire or lack thereof, including body paints. Snacks and non-alcoholic drinks to share for sustenance during the long day. Your own reusable feast gear (plates cups etc will no longer be provided when we run out of disposables) .

Oh, yes…and a donation for the Moggi ($10 recommended, no one turned away for lack of funds). This money pays for the maintenance and production of the event as well as for breakfast. Most recently, the heart drum got a new head. Next up is a tarp /shade covering for this year's event.

*

The energy of the day will be concentrated on drumming, dancing and calling for rain. We will celebrate the abundant life-giving gifts of the long light of the sun and call for much-needed summer rains. We will sing and dance and keep the sound-field going from sunrise to sunset. We will maintain the sound of the drum to call forth the rolling thunder. If we are fortunate, rain will appear.

Most blessed will be those who come Friday, help with the work, and stay through Saturday evening. Plenty of blessing remains for those who attend part time, or who leave and return again. Thrice blessed are those who volunteer to take a direction or a dance, or come help with set-up Friday or clean up the weekend before.

*

Sunflower River is located at 6911 Isleta Blvd SW. Please park on the shoulder of the road. If you need directions to Sunflower River, please respond to this email.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Love & Blessings,

Hannah, Alanna, Cat, Jaime, and Robin (the LongDance Coordination Committee) & Sunflower River

PS: Feel free to forward and share this email with like minded folks. You can subscribe or unsubscribe at any time through substack.

There was very little lost and found. Here is a photo of everything that was left:

If you see something that’s yours please get in touch before January 20 so that we can make a plan for you to get it back.

Summer LongDance will be June 21. I hope to see you there!

Blessings!
Hannah