I was heading to the Unencumbered Festival at West Winds Sanctuary in Onchiota, New York. My friend, Sam V., who had been watching my dog Maggie, was also going so I was able to bring her with me. I arrived late Friday night; it was too dark to see much of the land but it felt peaceful. As I walked up to the house there were multiple dogs running around playing with each other. When I walked in everyone was chatting and eating dinner so I joined in. I saw a few familiar faces and started chatting with some friends.
After eating I went down to where the fire was being held, which was a little place called the cauldron. It was down a pathway through the woods and opened up to a fire pit next to a little wooden building. I could hear music playing inside the building. There were multiple different colored lights swirling and spinning around too. I walked in to see a man playing his guitar while a woman stood next to him and painted. People were all around them, sitting on the floor enjoying the music, and a few people danced.
After listening to the music I went back outside where a bunch of people were gathered around the fire singing. I let Maggie off her leash to join the other free roaming dogs while I joined the fire. Theo was playing the guitar and we all took turns singing different songs. For one song we all went around and free styled something about ourselves and our names. It was nice to be with a group of so many friendly, welcoming people again. I sat and sang until I got too tired. I found a little place by my car to pitch my tent. It was chilly so Maggie and I curled up into the sleeping bag together.
The next morning when I woke up, Maggie had made her way all the way to the bottom of the sleeping bag. I was worried she couldn't breath down there, but when I pulled her out, she looked more annoyed that I had awoken her than happy to be saved. I let Maggie out of the tent to run freely with the other dogs as I headed towards the house. As I did, I started to take in the beauty of the land. The house sat atop a large hill that stretched down and opened up to Rainbow Lake at the bottom. There was a cute little boathouse down there with kayaks and a paddle boat for free use. When I walked into the house there were already some people inside cutting up different fruits for breakfast. I helped peel oranges and we arranged the fruit on a platter. We took the fruit back to the cauldron for everyone to share.
After we were done snacking, a girl named Sammy started a hula hooping class. I’ve been wanting to learn more with hula hooping so I was excited. We used different hoops that she had made. She taught us first how to spin the hoops around our waists and then how to spin them on our arms and hands. By the end she had us doing tricks where we would throw the hoops up in the air and catch them. The hoops would often go flying away or come back up and whack us in the face, which just added to the fun and laughter every time.
The next thing on the schedule was a Contact Dance with Ryan. Contact dancing is a flowing kind of dance where your body makes contact with your dance partner or multiple partners. You roll off and flow with each other. Ryan broke each part down: first dancing while standing, then in the middle area, and next on the floor. I had previously learned contact dancing but it was as if my body had almost forgotten how, but I kept going and had fun as we all tried to dance and flow to the music.
The next event was an Eccentric Photo Shoot with Adrienne. The ones who participated went to meet in the woods. There was a basket containing multiple different props such as articles of clothing, hats, and swords. First we did a section where we all went into the woods, connecting with its beauty. I sat in a sunny spot amongst ferns, some where alive and green and others were brown and wilted. Afterwards we came back together and discussed what the forest had taught us. I spoke about the ferns, showing that there is beauty in all parts of life, from beginning to end.
After this we used the costumes in whatever way we wanted as she took our pictures. Some people put on costumes with props, while others stripped down to nothing. I wore a few different costumes as she shot my photo, and thats all I was going to do. But at the end when most of the others had left and there were only a few females left, one of the girls stripped down and had her photos taken. I admired her bravery to be so vulnerable. I often struggle with loving my body and have been trying to find new ways to embrace it. This felt like a moment where I could work on that. I asked Adrienne if she would get a few of me nude. She said yes and helped me feel comfortable in my body and snapped a few pictures. I did feel vulnerable, but also empowered. This was a huge step for me toward learning to love my body. We then had a lovely community meal that was made with all the food everyone brought to share. After that I was exhausted and had to step out for a little nap. I snoozed for a short bit, awakened up by the sound of a crackling fire and of Theo playing guitar and singing. I laid in my tent a while enjoying the sounds before returning to the group. I sat by the fire, where I could see the stage where Theo was playing music.
After the music everyone gathered around the dance floor for Poetry Burlesque expression. It started with Michelle opening up with a poem that she wrote that went along with a dance. It was about temptations and whether to resist or give in. It was an incredible performance. Afterwards 3 of the girls got together and performed an amazing dance that spoke of embracing your sexuality. Lastly we went into the house where Ashera preformed a very talented pole dance. The muscle that it took to do everything she was doing was a wonder to watch. The next morning Sue led a chakra dance. She put on music and went through each of the chakras, starting with the root. For each one she described the color and the dance we should do to activate that chakra. After we went through all of them, we focused on the sacral chakra, which is right above your belly button and glows orange. We started with circular hip motions to open it up and then continued dancing. Afterwards we went into the house and with colored pencils we drew mandalas that represented the feelings that came up during the dance. It was the perfect way to start the day. I went over to my car where Sam V. was getting ready for a jog. He always tries to get me to jog, but that’s just not something I want to do. This time, though, he kept trying to convince me, and as he did our friends Acadia and Sam A. came over. I somehow got sucked into a jog, and the four of us set off. We jogged down the dirt road, taking different paths we came to along the way. The Sams mostly jogged ahead while I jogged with Acadia. I was glad that she came because jogging with her motivated me not to stop. We also talked the entire time, which kept me distracted from the fact that my lungs were burning and my body felt like giving out. We found a few little apple trees along the way and took a welcome stop for snacks.
Once we got back to the festival we headed straight for the lake. When I got there, Sam V. was on a paddle board and came to the dock to pick me up. He paddle boarded us out on the lake and we both dove into the icy cold water. It felt shockingly refreshing. As nice as if felt though, I got back onto the board and went back to the dock. With how cold it was, all my body could handle was one quick dip. On the dock I curled up in my towel, chatting with Acadia and the Sams. The next thing on the schedule was Primal Dance with Ryan. It was supposed to be on an outside dance floor, but due to rain we had to move into the building at the cauldron. Everyone packed into the room, and we started with crawling around on the floor. Ryan showed us different moves that were supposed to bring out our primal selves. He did all sorts of different rolls and twists on the floor, but eventually it got too crowded in that small building with everyone rolling into each other. He moved the rest of the dance out into the rain. I stayed back in the dry building, stretching with others that had stayed. Later that night we all gathered by the fire as we watched multiple people fire spin. Sammy was out there with a fire hula hoop, while others used different fire staffs. It was beautiful to be a part of all of it. Afterwards, as we were all gathered around the fire, we sang random silly songs that came to mind. Some where from Veggie Tales and others were ones people knew from when they were kids. Once I grew tired I gathered up Maggie and we cuddled up in the tent to sleep, looking forward to one more day of the festival ahead of me.
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