AOS DANA SCHEDULE

May 2nd, 3rd, 2008

Copyright © 2008

Steve Newcomer/Prairie Fire Productions

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AOS DANA SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

 

                          Thousands of years ago at Stonehenge, Callanish, the Giant’s  Circle and other Gatherin places,  the na cumman na Aos Dana (group of people with special talents) made preparations and prepared the grounds for Beltane.  During the thousands of years nothing has changed.  Preparations are made and the grounds are

still made ready for Beltane by the na cumman na Aos Dana.

 

             For weeks and months, during the dark half of the year, they have been working toward this festival.  Artists creating beautiful celtic designs on bodhrans; pipers learning new tunes, fiddlers memorizing new jigs; horsemen and oxmen breaking their animals; scribes recording the names of the dead in the great book; recording images of past festivals;  swordsmen honing their skills, warriors training for the games; the stonecutter engraving poetry on the stones; one nurtured the May Trees all year; an artist creating a new website; redmen planning the fires; building a beast cooker for the feast; making mead; and a myriad of other tasks that will make Th’ Gatherin  Th’ Fire Festival O’ Beltane 2006 one to remember.

 

             As it has ever been at Beltane; the na cumman na Aos Dana is “a Croi’ agus a fola”       (the heart and the blood) of this festival.  They are the “Spirit” of Th’

Gatherin”.  They invite you to join them as they prepare the grounds for Th’ Gatherin”.

Then you can boast in the Warriors Tent,--”Mo Croi “ , Mo Fuileach”.  (My heart, My Bloodshed).

 

SAT. & SUN. April 26 & 27:  Bring your mowers and bushhogs as we give Th Gatherin grounds it’s final trimming.

 

WED., April 30, 5:30 PM TILL DARK: Come join the Aos Dana as they start preparing

“Th’ Gatherin” grounds for the festival.  Lend your strong back as we erect th’ Warriors tent and set up th’  field faer th’ games.

 

THURS.May 1: 12:00PM till 6:00: Setting stones and setting up the Beltane Fires. Then head to Western Kansas Saloon & Grill in WaKeeney in response to the following invitation.

“The rogue pipers of Western Kansas want to invite you to the Western  Kansas  Saloon Friday, May 2: All day:  Set flags, decorate Warriors Tent, help arriving vendors set up their tents and unload wares.  Start the fires in the great beast cooker, Tony Mascarro, built for Th Gatherin.

 

FRIDAY NITE: 

6:00 

Th Gatherin will open with a Welcome to Th’ Clans, inspirational devotions delivered by the "Piping Vicar", Good Church Music by "Switchback" concluding with individual Clan and Family Blessings.  Then we will Dance and wrap the May Pole, Bring a piece of meat for the cooking fires, and the Aos Dana will prepare it for your feast.  Switchback will play for the ceilidh Friday night until 10 PM then to bed to prepare for the full long day of fun on Saturday. 

But if ye hae non, dinna worry,

“Sum hae meat,

An canna eat,

An sum wad eat,

An wan it.

But we hae meat,

An we can eat.

Sae let Th Lord be Thankit.”

               Burns                                                                                  

Sunday Morning May 4th:  Tear down of tents, etc., and cleanup of th’ grounds.