Katie has returned to embody the May Queen for a second time at Beltane Fire Festival, and has written a beautiful poem about the goddess who is fiercely protective of the world and those who live on it. Listen to her read it (or read the text yourself) below.

I embody the May Queen on Beltane night
She flows through me, a vessel, with force and might
And who is She, The May Queen.

We see her in the flowers, her joy unfolds the buds
From the tips of the trees to the roots and the leaves
And under the moss in the mud
Her breath is light her spirit is bright
Dancing along the lough
But her wrath is real, and from her do not steal, or on your door her storm doth knock

She’s the earth we belong to
The triple Goddess in mother form within you
She’s the one we honour, she’s the one we know
She’s the heart that beats within
She’s the heart that beats below

She created the land; renews and protects it see
Ignite her flame, but know it won’t tame
When it spreads, it’s wild and free

And She. Is. Angry.
We’ve exploited her children and we’ve gone too far this time
She’s exhausted. She’s burnt out.
We’ve taken too much without giving back to the sacred shrine
We don’t need another sign
To see
That the destruction of production to create this consumerist culture,
It’s eating away our earth
A carcass left by a vulture

Rising rising temperature and sea
Falling falling water food & energy
The perfect storm is not just approaching
The perfect storm is here!

But wait
Reframe, and let’s play a knew game
In the alchemy of transformation, when we create a we, we can so clearly see, that we were made for this time
There’s so much we can do if we listen and be true, it all starts with a rhythm and rhyme

The power of positive projection is the only way to overcome this fear infection
That our world is falling apart; our societal systems too
There’s people in our country that want to kick out members of our family
Well we say how rude.
may we remain
may we remain on this land for a while
In true scots, and irish and celtic and indigenous style
Nothing can take our hearts; nothing can take our arts
Nothing can vulture on this culture, nothing can take our true wild inner nature
Because when we come together, we create something bigger than our parts
We come together bearing our hearts
As warriors of joy
Love and creativity will save the world

So let’s take our neoliberalists egos and build a pyre
And on Beltane night; we can set it on fire!
We have the power to write the story of what’s to come
We create magic from myth by beating a drum

We set the soil and sow the seeds
Of a new season, a new day, a new month, a new way

I invite you to dream with me and I ask you one thing
Close your eyes
And let your soul sing

Remember a time, when you felt free
When you felt joy; love; when you could just be
Perhaps you were sitting under a tree

Let the joy swell in your heart
Every animal and plant that comes from the earth can feel this
It’s why we can’t keep apart
It’s why we need each other

I repeat; as warriors of joy
Love and creativity will save the world
Now open your eyes, let them be unfurled
So that you may see

No matter where you are
Or where you will go
We can always connect through the ritual
it’s not just a show
It’s a community, it’s a family;
A complex system at that!
But the more complex a food web system is
The more resilient it is, and that’s a fact.

There’s forces acting in our world darker
Than we have ever known.
But a darker night, frees brighter light
May our collective flame
Be shown

Featured image by Duncan Reddish for Beltane Fire Society. All rights reserved.