Flashback Friday, Episode 15 - Remembrance of Halloweens Past
Retreats with a Halloween theme have been popular, especially during the early years of Easton Mountain. Here's the front of a postcard that was used to promote such a program in 2006. The program was called "Unmasking Your Identity," and ran from Friday, October 27, through Sunday, October 29. On Friday evening, everyone put on costumes for dinner in the Great Room.
The centerpiece on the table was a candelabra designed by Moss Tidd. My costume was a black thong and a jacket with a Northwest Coast Indian design. A flogger hung from my belt. After the dinner the tables were moved, and dancing was the order of the evening.
The following year, Easton hosted a gathering of gay spiritual leaders from October 29 through November 1. Here's how the gathering was described:
This is a gathering that is deeply "inter-spiritual": we welcome gay leaders from all spiritual traditions to meet in a spirit of profound mutual respect and support, confident that we can learn from one another and that, in our various ways, we all seek to serve the human family and the sacred mystery of life itself, however we may name it.
On Halloween, Michael Kelly, from Australia, led a meditative ritual in the Temple. (Michael is back at Easton Mountain and, with John Stasio, will be hosting our Advent Retreat, Dec. 4-6.)