It was obvious, when you looked from the Sanctuary driveway, that Guernsey county had gotten a lot of rain. Granted, I hadn’t been there for over a decade, but it had been another decade on top of that since I’d seen flooding in the valley that lies between us and Pennyroyal Rd. on the other side. Especially since they had dredged Skull Fork Creek.
Seeing that flooding, certainly explained the muddy condition on the Sanctuary road, preventing most cars from heading up the hill. Only Dave’s 4×4 would make it up the hill. The rest of us had to park at the bottom and haul stuff up “Dragon Hill”. (Smile) Just like when it all originally began. Yup, Mother was/is taking us back to the beginning.
Since the times of regular gatherings, there has been much wood come down from wind and lightning strikes. All the paths that led you out into various areas of this sacred site have been covered with many layers of leaves and blocked by some of that fallen wood.
All the cabins are still standing and the trailers that still reside there are in fairly good shape. Two of the three double-seater outhouses still stand in good shape. The third has had a tree come down on it, but is being rebuilt. (Thank you, Dave.)
I felt like I was on an archaeological dig when some of us went to the Lower Circle to clean it up. The four pillars, marking the Watchtowers, are still standing and in good condition. Amazingly, the chimenea, that stands in the South, was not only still there, but in good condition as well. The flat stones, that had been transported there years ago by us, were hidden – buried, if you will – by leaves and composted earth from years of not being used or cared for. Briars were growing everywhere, both inside and outside the Circle. We did our best, for now, in removing those briars, raking away the leaves and beginning to uncover those buried stones. It’s a start. 
Originally, I had painted the “Rules” signs. They sorely need repainting. I’m hoping we have a new artist out there who would be willing to donate time and maybe even materials to redo them.
Much of what still needs doing involves sawing, chopping, stacking that wood that’s down. Mary’s even marked dead trees that need taking down. Those will require a chainsaw. If anyone has one they would be willing to come and use, we would be most grateful.
Please don’t think that this is some kind of “downer” article. Yes, there is a lot that needs doing, but none of it is beyond hope or repair. What is need is help – both physical and financial. We will soon be creating a page on GoFundMe.com where people can use their debit and credit cards to help with the financial part. As for the physical part, we could use all the help we can get to make this go as quickly as possible. The end result will be a restored sacred site where regular scheduled gatherings will once again take place along with continued work weekends for maintenance.
In the meantime, a BIG “Thank you!” goes out to all those who have already contributed time, effort and/or money to this cause. Yes, we’ve notice and we are extremely grateful!!!
For those who couldn’t make it this time, the next work weekend will be from 3 p.m. on April 24th to 3 p.m. on April 26th.
Blessed Be,
Elder Maya/Samantha Herron
Raven-Wolf Nature Sanctuary 