Last month I wrote about our fantastic pilgrimage to the Canadian Rockies and then I had a one day turn around before heading off to England for my nephew's wedding-my one and only blood nephew-my sister's son. I arrived on the Friday afternoon and the wedding was on the next day. I learned on my arrival that my sister still had our Mother's ashes following her passing three years ago and so we both tuned in and felt strongly that she would want to return to her homeland of Wales. She was born in a small market town just over the border in Wales called Abergavenny. We recalled that she had fond memories as a little girl of Sugar Loaf Mountain, spending time with her Dad identifying and collecting wild flowers on the lower slopes. I also learned there was another mountain called Skirrid Fawr which was considered a Holy Mountain and a St. Michaels Mount! Legend has it that the top of the mountain slid off on the day Christ was crucified signalling it as a Holy place. 

on the banks of the River Usk that runs through the town with a clear view of both mountains. Two interesting observations were that as we put our blessing of flowers in the river, a black cow wandered into the river and stood there drinking and swishing its tail throughout the ceremony. There were many cows on the farbank but only this one wandered into the river. Also as we completed the ceremony, a broad rainbow band started drifting across the top of Skirrid Fawr-not a typical rainbow, but rainbow colours. A beautiful blessing. We had a real sense of completion not only for us, but for our whole lineage and our deep connection to the border country of England and Wales. We also went to a war memorial near our home town of Birmingham at the top of another power spot in the landscape called Barr Beacon. We were surprised to find flowers already in place here and so we just added ours to the blessing.