DER GEISCHDERSCHTRUTZ - PARADE OF SPIRITS: PHILADELPHIA

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Parade of Spirits: Post-Parade Commentary

The Parade of Spirits this year was easily our largest. The estimate, by consensus, is that over 600 people attended! Many thanks to my fellow organizers, Janet Finegar and Linda Soffer, for helping to make this event a success! Thanks also to Lorenda and to Aly for the excellent entertainment following the Parade! Neil Kohl, as always, we owe you a debt of gratitude for donating your photography skills and your images! My personal gratitude goes out to Stacey Stewart for the official poster and other artwork, to Michael Stewart for the logistics of the buggy and for playing Belsnickel, and to Paul Mercurio and Gabriel Diaz for being the dead horses ahead of the buggy. If Stephen King's "Christine" were a buggy... Photo by Neil Kohl And to Sadie, the skeleton in the buggy, for her patience. Parade of Spirits 2022: Saturday, December 10, 2022! Mark your calendars!

Post-Parade Entertainment in Liberty Lands!

Sneak Peek to whet your appetites for the entertainment that follows the Parade of Spirits! Fire Queen of Swords from FireBellydance by Lorenda on Vimeo . Please join us after the Parade to enjoy the performance by Lorenda and Aly ! Parade of Spirits -2021- Der Geischderschtrutz Liberty Lands Park 913 N. 3rd Street Philadelphia, PA Saturday, December 11, 2021 Gather at 4:00 PM EST Parade steps off at 4:36 PM Entertainment to Follow Rain, Shine, or Snow Weather may affect start time of entertainment

Der Holzhacker - The Woodchopper

Late-Coming Idea: Der Holzhacker For a generally cheery, agricultural people, we Urglaawer sure do like our shadowy entities. One whom we have talked about in the past has yet to make an appearance at the Parade of Spirits because this entity is so shifty that we barely know where to start. Vorsicht! Der Holzhacker Deep in the Dunkelgegend, at the base of the World Tree, in the darkest of the realms, there is a forest. The forest is dense, and there is a sense of enchantment combined with an eeriness that simultaneous calls to and pushes away the souls that are making their journey to The Mill. Somewhere among the trees and the thickets is a strange entity. No one knows what the true nature or appearance of this being is. We only know that two people could be looking at this entity and seeing a completely different facade. This being is known by a few names in Pennsylvania Dutch: der Holzhacker, der Holzmann, der Miessler, and in English, this being is most dramatically called The W

Parade of Spirits Official Post: Remarks, "Rules," and Expectations for 2021. Please Read!

PARADE OF SPIRITS OFFICIAL POST REMARKS ON 2021 (Including a few "rules" and expectations): This will be posted in multiple places. Please do read. Our event is shaping up to be off the hook this year! Our new blog provides the back story that has been the functional basis of the Parade and much of the mythology that is depicted emerges from Pennsylvania Dutch folklore and tradition. Similar "shadow side" concepts exist in cultures around the world, and we invite people to share their depictions of their liminal beings. This is an inclusive event. No racist or bigoted expressions will be tolerated. Although, in the past, the Pennsylvania Dutch traditions were to color the face of certain characters in coal or black makeup to represent entry to homes through chimneys, this is not acceptable given the history of blackface in other, racism-based contexts as an oppressive or mocking tool. This event is about celebrating our diversity in our shared space, so Gedreier Ec

Parade of Spirits: Costume Suggestions!

DER GEISCHDERSCHTRUTZ: PARADE OF SPIRITS: The two Germanic goddesses who turn up heavily in the Pennsylvania Dutch and German lore of this time of year are strongly associated with geese and birch trees. We could use some geese in the Parade. Plant spirits can also be in the Wild Hunt, so, as strange as it might sound, the spirit of a dead birch tree could walk, too! And, below are some ideas that would be awesome to have participants bring into the Parade. Grimm’s Description of Some on the Hunt: “ in front of the troop came an old man with a white staff, the trusty Eckhart, warning people to move out of the way, and some even to go home, lest harm befall them. Behind him, some came riding, some walking, and among them persons who had lately died. One rode a two -legged horse, one was tied down on a wheel which moved of itself, others ran without any heads, or carried their legs across their shoulders.’ ‘A drunken peasant, who would not make room for the host, was caught up and set up

Voryuul / Parade of Spirits: Why The Buggy

We often hear the phrase, "The Turning of the Wheel," bandied about in many Heathen and Pagan traditions. This often refers to the changeover from one year to the next. For some, that turning is emphasized at the end of October. For others, it is observed at Yule, and, even among those who observe it at those times, most of us still recognize the fact that the wheel is in constant motion through the linear time to which the physical plane is (mostly) relegated to adhere. One will sometimes also hear phrases to the effect of, "The Wheel of the Year it tilted." Sometimes these comments are referring to the Earth's axial tilt or to the global seasonal differences that result from said tilt. In Urglaawe, though, the Yaahrsraad ("Year Wheel") is not perceived to function on a tilt as much at is is on a multi-layered spiral. Trying to identify a beginning and an end point is not always easy, particularly since the life-death-rebirth cycle is ongoing. There a