Before the feast began, Sir Christian had the merry task of proffering a special recognition to a special guest. In recognition of her talented tailoring skills, our guest Lady Lydia was issued a warrant proclaiming her an official merchant of the Order of Selohaar. To see the warrant, click here.

This year's Bardic Circle was the largest and a great success. People were very generous with their talents, and it was obvious that people prepared for weeks in order to participate. As is tradition, the feast and Bardic Circle began with the Wassail Bowl being passed as Sir Christian sang the "Wassail Song". Lady Stacy graced us with a passionate Middle Eastern dance. Lord Matthew shared a special type of American Sign Language (ASL) Poetry using the letters S-E-L-O-H-A-A-R to show an archer's attempts to hit the target. Lady Sarah also did American Sign Language Poetry but using the numbers 1 through 5 and back to 1 to show a novice fighter in tournament.

Before the arrival of the bacon wrapped venison, Lady Jessica performed her original poem "Full Moon's Child". This poem won the 2005 Marie J. Philips Award for outstanding ASL poetry and was judged to be "Best Talent" at the 2006 Miss Deaf America Pageant. Lady Maureen shared two witty tales; "Covering your Ass" and the "Silent Debate".

With the final course of fruit and cheese, Lady Catriona played the poignant tune Ashokan's Farewell on the violin. To conclude the feast, Sir Christian led the revelers in the song "Health to the Company".

Tropical Storm Noel paid an invigorating visit to the Manor for the Samhain gather. The gust of winds made the golden leaves shutter and dance around the tournament fields. The chilly winds were bracing but could not force the gathering entirely inside to the comforts of candle light and hearthside fire.

Sir Mark Keller, Southern Preceptor, called in from Florida's warmer clime to make report of his activities in the southern realm. Lady Paula had a weekend long commitment for the Girl Scouts so they postponed their gathering to next week. They will be meeting with their folks at the Sarasota Renaissance Faire for the daytime activities and will then retreat to their Keller Manor for socializing and feasting.

At Selohaar Manor, those in attendance were:

Lord Michael sharing thoughts at the Manor

Lords Matthew and Michael are inducted into the Order

Members and guests were able to finally enjoy the comforts of the newly created fountain area. The Lord and Lady of the Manor have named the seating area "The Kelly Fountain" as a sign of appreciation to the Squire Lord Robert who single handedly crafted the surroundings. Though the air was warm, the stone benches and the gentle sounds of water made the environs cool and relaxing.

A new record of 14 archers took to the line for, perhaps, the last tournament of the year. Lady Maureen, the holder of the Archer's Collar did not compete in this tournament. She had a recent mishap and her hand was still on the mend. Observing the competitors, it was evident that they had acquired confidence and comfort with a bow in hand. Many were applying the lessons learned at the previous matches. Several guests were first time archers and regardless, were enjoying the experience. The newly purchased Order bow was used for the first time and was judged to be a good weight and length for general use.

As this was possibly the last competition of the season, the Lord and Lady of the Manor proffered pewter badges as tokens to the winners to have as keepsakes of the event. The Collar of course is kept as long as the champion archer can continue to win it.

1st Place : Lord Christopher
2nd Place: Lord Matthew
3rd Place: Lord Scott

Lord Christopher graciously said that it felt like a hollow victory since he was not been pitted against the Lady Maureen. Lady Maureen has had the collar for the whole season and he has given her a serious challenge throughout. He noted that he was always 3 points behind the Lady Maureen in previous competitions. This was his first time as the champion archer. She courteously told him not to worry; she would be challenging him once again next spring.

The tournament of arms was well-attended, with numerous combatants taking the field for the last contest of the season. Of particular note were a sword and buckler bout between Lord Rob and his guest Lord Devon, a longsword encounter between Lord Michael Edelson and Sir Christian, and a spirited poleaxe combat at the barrier between Sir Christian and Lord Christopher. The tournament was also noteworthy for the array of fine harness gracing the field.

A courtly discussion was led by Sir Christian and Sir John. Sir John is overseeing a group of creative souls in a quest to expand and revise the Order's mythos. The basic story line will have the Archetypes go on quests that will test and strengthen their Knightly Virtues. The current list of Knightly Virtues which the Order adheres to contains 10 virtues. This list is just one of dozens coming from the middle ages. The court's discussion was an examination of the various lists of virtues and to see if they were accurate to our understanding.

Sir John and the other members of his team would like each Archetype to go on solitary quests so that each of the virtues could be represented. The rub, is that ten virtues are not easily divisible by three. People felt that nine virtues would resonate our spiritual affinity to the number three. There was some discussion of expanding the virtues to 12 which might be easier than choosing a virtue to eliminate. The virtue of "Defense" was discussed at length as it appears to be more of an external skill than an internal virtue. Several other virtues are a part of the nature of Defense as well. This discussion was quite lengthy, and is sure to arise at court in the future.

Sir Christian
Lord Christopher
Lord Robert
Lord Robert (parent)
Lady Allison (parent)

Sir Christian opened the tournament, an Errant's Pas, with a reading of the Pas d'Armes' announcement and a bestowing of a blessing upon Lord Christopher, with the assistance of Lady Elizabeth. There was much beautiful harness on the field this day, with the host combatant particularly resplendent in his new leg harness. Lord Christopher offered his challengers the choice of fighting with the longsword, spear, or poleaxe, in the field or at the barrier.

The day's fighting was brisk but skillfully conducted. Lord Rob stood as Lord Christopher's second for one match so that his friend and brother-in-arms might find some brief respite and refreshment. Lord Scott remembered his Fechtschule training well and he, Lords Matt, John, and Rob gave fine account of themselves in their matches.

Once the visiting combatants had made two rounds of challenges, Lord Christopher opened the field to all who wished to train in it or seek after more renown.

As the sun began to set, a gentle rain began. The sky crackled in the distance foretelling of more earnest rain to come. All pitched in to clear the pavilion and equipment from the field, and the merriment quickly resumed indoors. The company, exhausted but joyous, shared in a barbecue feast prepared by Lord Robert Valli, with assistance from our Lord Rob Kelly.

Gathers take weeks to prepare for. It could be burdensome if it fell solely to the residents of the Manor. However, we are fortunate that the members each see a personal responsibility to be a part of the evolution of the Order and the Manor. This summer, Lord Robert, Quarter Master of the Order, has been instrumental to the capital improvements to the Manor grounds. He has dedicated his time, and muscle to the side yard gardens. He built the stone foundation for the new fountain. He traveled with Lady Maureen to acquire the materials and the furnishings. In addition, he has plans to expand the stonework to the front yard to create a continuity of the garden walls. With the growth in attendance that the Order has seen this year, the side garden and front garden improvements will afford the attendants more varied and comfortable areas to socialize.

The manor has also seen renovations to the interior. Lady Maureen and Sir Christian have invested in the improvement of the kitchen with a new floor, back splash and under cabinet lighting. To the center of the room, they have purchased a kitchen island. The search was long to find an appropriate and affordable item that could store all the culinary equipment and was the right size. The voluntary support of Lords Robert, Matthew and Christopher made this possible. They carried, assembled and customized the kitchen island in time for the recent gather.

This year's tradition of arranging flowers continued. The first ladies to arrive joined with Lady Maureen to create rose arrangements that perform triple duty for decroration, feast center piece and alter quarters. Ladies Stacy, Elizabeth and Veronica began their work with the Mistress of the Manor on the deck, but were quick to move indoors when bolt of lightening struck very close to the grounds.

Members and guests assembled in the living room to participate in an in-depth discussion regarding the sequence and steps of Selohaar ritual. Sir Christian set the stage and Sir Carl provided the foundation. the next hour or so was filled with many voices sharing their perspective of the parts of ritual.

The ringing of the bell and the association of the nine chimes with the Nine Sacred Inborn Rights began the discussion from the floor. People shared that they saw the bell as a divider of time… the before, the during, and the after. Attendees saw it as time to focus attention on what is to come. Lady Maureen shared that she saw the bell as cleanser of the ritual space. Like the waves that emanate outward from the dropped pebble, the bell's sound waves push outward in three dimensions; pushing out the energy leaving the space neutral for our use.

The second step of ritual is the calling of the quarters. With the advent of the new era within the Order, the alignment of the element with the cardinal directions was changed to match the historic or classical order. People contributed their understanding of the purpose of this step of ritual. It defines the space. It connects us with the physical and external world. It is the first portion of ritual that we collectively project purpose.

The next portion of Ritual is the invocation of the Archetypes. Sir Christian made it very clear that Vorthr, Verena and Volnar are not deities. They are examples of strengths that we all aspire to, and they align with the regalia of the Order. The symbolism of the three is significant in western spiritual belief. So, the archetypes are the representation of the spiritual and internal aspect of the ritual. Lady Maureen explained that this portion is a place marker for people to envision their own spiritual ideals. Sir John shared with the group that he see the Christian ideal of Saint George in the archetype of Vorthr. With this, Sir Christian bestowed a bronze pendant of the saint to Sir John.

Glorious summer has finally arrived! The Spring had been cool and frequently rainy, but the Solstice gather weekend was blessed by a convergence of the elements to have cool breezes, warm sunshine, low humidity, verdant trees and flowering gardens. Tourney combatants were prepared for the long awaited opportunity to test their training on the field.

The Manor again had new décor for the field of honor. The Lady Jessica of the Great Plains Fechtschule crafted pennants and flags for the Order. The side yard of the Manor and the rose garden have been adorned with new water features, and the tournament field was ringed with both the round and Burgundian pavilions.

The field set for the tournaments at Selohaar Manor - June 23, 2007

Lord Michael Edelson
Lord Michael Ahrens
Lord Brian Hook

Knights, Selohaar Fechtschule members, and honored guests finally were able to test their skills on the field of honor. Just prior to the first contest of skill, Lady Maureen, for the first time in her roll as Order Priestess, blessed the tournament combatants. Lord Christopher put forward the first challenge of spears at the barrier to Sir Christian.

First time competitors to a Selohaar tournament were Lord Matthew and Lady Catriona. Lord Matthew recounted that he fought and lost all three of his bouts. But, it should be noted, that he said, with a broad smile and glint in his eye, that he loved every minute of it. Lord Robert made comment that Lord Mathew's form was very good regardless of the results.

Lady Catriona fought in new mail, which arrived at the Manor that very morning. It was more comfortable than she expected. Sir Christian was exceedingly pleased with the "comfort and grace" demonstrated by Lady Catriona during her five bouts.

Lord Robert had the best record for the tournament with four wins and one loss. Lord Robert felt that his first bout, which he lost, taught him a lot. He needed to adjust his distance from his opponent, increase his movement, and adjust his stance. He applied these lessons and thus won the next competitions that day.

Sir Christian and Lord Christopher tied for the next most successful day with three wins and two losses each. Sir Christian was very proud of the performance of the Selohaar Fechtschule students and guests during the tournament. There was much progress and application of Master Liechtenauer's techniques at the festivities.

This was also the first tournament to utilize the new padded longswords from Realistic Sparring Weapons of Hong Kong, which performed far beyond everyone's expectations.

Lady Maureen was the chef for the Solstice feast with the much-appreciated support of Ladies Stacy, Elizabeth and Bonnie and Lord Blair. The feast was Chicken and Broccoli Braided Croissant, rice and carrots cooked in a chicken broth, mashed potatoes, and mixed green salad with poached pear and balsamic dressing.

The feast hall was near capacity, with merry conversation of the day's two tournaments, period garments and the future planning of gathers and trips. New friendships were forged betwixt the Order members and our honored guests from New York (especially our friends from the New York Historical Fencing Association), New Hampshire and Massachusetts. When the dishes laid empty before the feasters, Sir Christian and Lady Maureen made presentations of gifts. During the Imbolc gather, many members and guests partook of the illuminations activity and left their finely wrought art for the chronicler to scan for the edition of the News of the Realm. The art was so nicely made, that the Grand Master and his lady wife had the illuminations framed to properly return the art to their makers.

The Solstice gather affords the assemblage time to mingle before Circle. In the lingering twilight, the Manor grounds were still colorful in the dimming light for the strolling and conversing attendants. Since the last gather, two new water features were installed. The rose garden had a more prominent lion fountain nestled beneath the deck. A Venetian style fountain was installed as the first step to a courtyard setting to be created in the side yard. Over the summer, a Belgian block and brown stone foundation will encircle the fountain and more plantings will be added to the site.

Prior to magic circle, two momentous events took place. Lady Catriona McDonald, a long-time student of the Selohaar Fechtschule, and good friend to the Order, was admitted as a Free Sister, the initiatory level of our society. Lady Maureen bestowed two triquetra pendants upon Lady Catriona. Because of her professional and personal interest in anthropology, one of the triquetras was a hand wrought one, which served the Order prior to the marketplace mass production of the symbol. Along with the two charms, a triquetra box was gifted. They were left on the alter for the assemblage to charge during the energy rising.

First Place: Lady Maureen 39 points
Second Place: Lord Christopherwith 36 points
Third Place: Lord Matthew with 21 points

At the conclusion of feast, Lady Maureen asked for a moment to make a presentation. The recent change in the Order had made her reflect on how precious the knowledge, talents and history of the Order of Selohaar are. She wanted to formally preserve these treasures in a special way. Lady Maureen bestowed the Book of Selohaar to the Order. She commissioned it from Brahms' Bookworks. Her recent illuminations workshop was secretly to prepare the members to craft the pages that will be illuminated in this elegant tome. The Grandmaster, Sir Carl and Lady Maureen will be crafting the current Book of Selohaar into illuminated text over the next few months. Sir Carl will be assembling a chronology of the Order which will also be housed in the new Book of Selohaar.

Special thanks must be said to our generous member, Lady Bonnie. She bestowed on the Order silver glass chargers to adorn our feasting tables. Sir Christian was most please and appreciative of the generosity. It bodes well for the Order when the spirit of largess comes from the members.

Prior to Circle, Lord Coates was initiated into the rank of Knight of Selohaar. (To see the ritual outline, click here.) Sir John is our first knight of the third age. His path that led him to knighthood has been unique for the Order. Sir John has been a member for 17 years. During this time, he has attained a medical degree, served as a doctor in the US Army in Kosovo, Hawaii, South Korea, Ireland, Germany and the United States. His martial and healing prowess, his dedication to the Order regardless of distance, and his endearing wit and wisdom has earned him the rank of knight without the necessity of squireship.

"Don't wish it were easier; wish that you were better.
Don't wish for less problems: wish for more skills.
Don't wish for less challenges; wish for more wisdom."

Ladies Maureen and Bonnie present the new Book of Selohaar to Sir Christian

Sirs Carl and Christian receive the bound Book of Selohaar