gather: St. Mark's field blessing
field blessings, an Italian supper, & tending shoes
Hi folks! My name is Kristin - I’m a Pacific Northwest artist, farmer, & mom sharing art and reflections inspired by the sacred & the seasonal, place & past. I explore the agrarian heritage of the liturgical calendar and how our varied homes, landscapes, & lives reflect it.
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For the past few years, I’ve hosted a Liturgical Life group. We’re a diverse gathering - of all ages, from a variety of denominations, learning alongside each other and working to graft the traditions of the liturgical calendar into our own varied circumstances.
An April re-cap
When I was looking toward April to plan our Liturgical Ladies (& Laddies!) gathering, I gravitated toward the feast of St. Mark (April 25)…precisely because I knew so little about its traditions. It can feel a bit daunting, but also freeing: there were new-to-me paths to explore, as well as the realization that I really didn’t know too much about such a crucial figure as Mark!
What I stumbled upon in my reading and my ponderings was a paradoxical celebration: both feast and fast, a potently transitional feast that almost had the flavor of a springtime Hallowe’en, peculiar as that may seem. And it’s fitting: St. Mark, “Master of Weather,” is celebrated during temperamental April…a springtime month that seems to go back and forth between storm & sunshine in moments.
Filled with bright Venetian traditions - owing to the odd circumstances surrounding St. Mark’s body centuries after his death, when he was stolen away by two Venetians - this feast has a decidedly Italian, vernal flair to it.
We blended that with our PNW surroundings - a quintessentially wet spring - to make for a really lovely, playful evening.
Though St. Mark’s day is now a few weeks past, I wanted to take you along for some glimpses into our gathering - I hope it offers some festive ideas for you to use next year!
Blessing the field
