AIDS 25 Ceremony

Let me share one more special gift from yesterday...

As we gathered earlier at the corner of 18th and Castro marking the 25th anniversary of AIDS coming into our community, reading the names of our departed Nuns of the Above, a mature blue heron flew over the B of A building - right over all of us- on the way towards Corona Heights. If you haven't seen one of these birds, they're magnificent -- with long elegant necks and a wingspan of over eight feet. For many first nations people the heron is a very special spirit totem: an animal that both helps with remembering and bridging the worlds between spirits and humans, and a totem who stands for "inner reflection and active manifestation of one’s spiritual path."Heron people are not traditional in their life roles and 'stand out' in their uniqueness and the heron carries a reminder to follow your own innate wisdom and path of self-determination and to keep your emotions in balance along the way- knowingÊemotions are not you, but rather 'reactions' to your perceptions and what you 'think'.

I can't think of a more fitting spirit to bless the Sisters gathered on that corner, and by extension, all of us who make of our vows a way of living in the world. Though the connections were not planned out on a map yesterday, all these separate moments were strung together, like the beautiful paper cranes and nuns Sister Mary Timothy brought to hang on the AIDS Memorial-- a blessing on all of us and a very real reminder of the magic we work and the energy and power available to us when we stand in our truth as sisters together and manifest back to our community the beauty we see in them as we do our work.

Of course, the Heron could also have been the spirit of our dear departed Sister Kumonawannalaya who flew by to give us a hand as we were stumbling over the pronunciation of her name! Regardless, the bird reminded me of how very much these departed sisters stand with us and give us energy and inspiration to continue the work they started.

Thanks to everyone for a truly holy day! May we have many more to come. And to those novices and sisters elevating yesterday, be mindful of the tremendous spirit energy that was present yesterday- draw from it and honour it in your unfolding work. You have some wonderful sisters working with you.

Blessings,

Sister Merry Peter