“Rites of Passage weave the threads of the past with the threads of the future.” 

- Luis Rodriguez

Since time immemorial across many if not most places on this beloved Earth, people have come together to mark change. Whether it’s the return of spring to the landscape, a child emerging into adolescence, or tending the death of a loved one, one thing is for certain -  Life Changes. This may perhaps be the most natural thing in the world. 

When significant changes are well met with culturally-responsible practices and clear intentions, we can be blessed into the next chapter. We can live into greater wholeness and growing service to our communities, working in partnership with nature. When this collective need for marking change is unmet, we often fall out of coherence with life. 

These days here in the Methow Valley, with the complexities of personal, collective, ancestral histories, we ask: how do we navigate change, here and now, together as a community? For young people, elders, and those navigating the middle years, how do we collectively recognize what’s truly needed and respond with clear direction? How do we ask for the support we need to gracefully navigate the changes we face, and how do we offer our support to one another in navigating these transitions? How might we build a web of community support? 

At this cross-quarter time between the winter solstice and spring equinox, we invite community members across the lifespan to join us to explore these questions together.  Whether you’re new to this topic and are curious to learn more, or have your own related stories and life work to share, please join this special opportunity to see and be seen in community. 

For the past four years, Darcy Ottey and Scott Davidson have been offering a 10-day rite of passage ceremony in the Methow Valley. Darcy is the author of Rites and Responsibilities: A Guide to Growing Up. Scott guides the men’s rite of passage with the School of Lost Borders.