Surrendering to the alchemy of bigger forces

Thoughts from participating in Firefly Annual Gathering, 2024

Last week, we attended Firefly Annual Gathering, a week-long communal experience to soak up all things earth-skills. In 2023, we drove cross-country to attend the same gathering for the first time. At that time, to the surprise of everyone, it rained all through the week, and our camper van was a complete soggy mess. Despite the unfortunate weather circumstances, our family's experience was pure wow. Firefly last year felt like taking our favorite parts of moments from our family homeschooling life, camping, Burning Man (Frido and I went before smartphones, selfies, and influencers…), and Rise Festival (we got to participate a bunch of times, but our favorite one was still the first time before it became such a scene). After attending Firefly last summer, we drove another five days to return to LA. I arrived home feeling a sense of wonder and inquiry in my heart.