In 2007, I was interviewed twice by local reporters, first for the Detroit Free Press in June, and then for the Ann Arbor Observer in December.  It was a great way to get the word out to people about our Grove and what we do, and to address misconceptions that folks might have about us.  The most obvious one being the very reason that those newspapers wanted to do stories about us in June and December: that the solstices were important Druid holidays.  Both reporters asked me about the significance of those special days to the ancient Druids, and I had to explain that no, the solar stuff wasn't a big deal to the Celts.  The follow-up they each asked me at the time (and I was impressed that they'd thought it through to that extent) was why the ancient Druidic site of Stonehenge was lined up to indicate the summer solstice if the solstices weren't a big deal.  I then got to explain to them that, well, Stonehenge was built a few millennia before the Druids or the Celts ever set foot on that island.  And the people who built it certainly thought the solstices were important, but they weren't the Druids.  The Druids certainly used the site once they got there, of course, because hey, if I had a cool stone circle in my back yard I'd find a way to do rituals there whether I'd designed it or not!

So I was intrigued when Gen passed along a link to a recent piece in the Los Angeles Times that talked about Stonehenge and other ancient sites, and compared them to our modern architecture and culture.  Like many neo-Pagans, I have no problem seeing the similarities between what we do and what the Ancients did, but it was good to see a major metropolitan newspaper point it out as well.

Personally, I don't think a week goes by that I don't take a metaphorical step back, look at our road network or the old buildings in downtown Ann Arbor or our system of government (okay, maybe during primary season I'm less thrilled about that one) and feel grateful to our Ancestors, that they left us such good things to help us live our lives well.  If you haven't already, take some time to honor the Ancestors today!

Rev. Rob Henderson
Senior Druid, Shining Lakes Grove, ADF

The article Current did on us: http://www.ecurrent.com/view_article.php?id=1524

The article the Free Press did on us: No longer available on their site (unless you want to pay for it), but e-mail us at kargach@netscape.com and we'll send it to you