Tending the Garden of Community

As a Sacred Fire Firekeeper, I see myself and fellow Firekeepers planting seeds for the future, at a time when that future does not seem particularly promising.

Humanity as a whole is destroying the planet and there’s a place inside each of us that knows this. In the face of this current reality, the incredible power and healing energy of the Spirit of Fire, which we affectionately call Grandfather Fire, comes as an amazing antidote to the disconnection and challenges of modern life. There is mystery and magic when people gather around Fire: inside of us, something that we may have forgotten or discounted can germinate. I’ve seen and felt in my guts how Fire deeply touches those gathered, how people light up and go home afterwards with a smile, with their hearts full of gratitude and more open to the challenges they’re facing.

The isolation and lack of meaning in the life of so many has deep roots, going back many generations, and it takes patience and commitment to tend to the loneliness and lostness that people are feeling. It may take generations to turn things around. As Firekeepers we are like gardeners, tending communities in our local settings, offering a space around Fire each month, each moon, each cycle. It is a great privilege to be called to this work. Now with 70 Firekeepers in 10 countries, I can feel the fruits of our labors casting fresh, welcome seeds of renewal and connection far and wide.

— Ana Cortés, Firekeeper
Tepoztlán, Morelos, Mexico
January 13, 2020