Week 12: Ancestors, proper write-up

The proper write up from last week. Since I didn't get it done over the weekend and I'm apparently a week ahead of the study group, so I actually have a bit of time.

Since my practice prior to this hasn't really included the Ancestors in a personal sense, I started with an Invocation. I partially combined the Invocation from the Dedicant Manual and one of the Invocations on the ADF website. I added some other things because they felt right (offerings to the Earth Mother and Heimdall).

As an invitation to the Ancestors, I offered some rosemary (for remembrance) and lavender oil (for calm). The Earth Mother and Heimdall both got a libation of hard cider.

After I finished the Invocation, it really felt like I had folks just yelling at me, "name me! I'm at this party!" For the most part, this was fine, even if they are all folk I would consider to be blood family. I'm fortunate in that there are very few people in my family who I would invite or who would show up at an open invitation. However, my (blood) grandfather did show up. I would not have invited him if at all possible. At the advice of the Grove, I think I'm going to commune/ talk with his first wife (my grandmother) and mother-in-law. See if they can't corral him.

I suppose I probably didn't need to put forth an open call, however, not putting forth an open call would have meant that relatives I didn't think about didn't show up. One of those cases where having a very small family is not the best thing ever. Relatives who were dead before I was born (in 1 case, before my parents were born) want to be acknowledged.

I need to put together a box of remembrances for those whose influence is most especially felt in my life. Crochet hooks and knitting needles for Grandma T and G-Grandmas L and H, maybe a bit of yarn or a quilt block. Grandpa K was always proud of his teaching career and cooking. Grandpa B gets a golf ball. The thing that springs to mind for P is a car, but that might also just be my sick sense of humor. Ora and Lillian also wanted attention, but I didn't get the sense they wanted to be constantly thought of?

I need to put in more work. I know who wants attention now, so I need to give it to them.