This is the third installment of my vandrestav journey this summer, 2011. The first two events, Trothmoot and Northern Folk Gathering, were specifically designed for practitioners of the spirituality of the Northern European folk tradition.

The Midwest Viking Festival, which took place July 16 – 17, was a celebration of specifically Viking era traditions, attracting Scandinavians looking for deeper root connections as well as public from many other cultures seeking to learn more about their Scandinavian American neighbors. Though not strictly a “Viking re-enactment camp,” education and context for the learning was achieved through historical re-enactment.

For the prior two events, I was invited to teach volva stav, my own contemporary expression of the volva, staff carrier of Northern European spiritual tradition. I performed from my wide repertoire of songs and stories that connect the listener to my own ancestral journey, healing oorlag and honoring disr (female ancestor guides). For the two prior events, my perspective of living in the here and now on this pathway was the source of my involvement in the events.

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