My life and times on star island

I have attended a conference called YES, which is short for youth empowerment and spiritual health, for six years now. It should be YESH, with H for health, but it was decided that YES sounded better. Besides all that, I have had six years with the conference now and it has really changed my life. I was timid, and often down on myself, and the conference swept me up, and made me whole. The history of Star Island, where the conference is set, itself overwhelmed me, and the natural beauty of the land is captivating. The conference’s own ceremonies, bonfire, grocking, and other, deeply moved me. I have been to star island five times now, a week at time, and it means very much to me in a way that is hard to define. Though is suppose writing is an attempt to find a definition for that which is hard to explain simply, so I will try.

When my first boat to the pulled up to the stone dock, I was welcomed back by a simple cheer, with a long history. “S T A R, S T AR, Oceanic, Oceanic, RAH, RAH, RAH, you did come back, you did come back, you did come back.” This is returned with a similar cheer, different only by the “we did come back” refrain. I had not been sure what I was getting myself into with the conference, and now I was even more confused.

To explain Star Island is a small island off the coast of New Hampshire. It is one of the small subset of islands called the Isles of Shoals in the waters of Maine and New Hampshire respectively. The Island has had a long history. It was discovered by John Smith, of Pocahontas fame, back in the sixteen hundreds. Later the shoals where used by notorious pirates as a hiding place, including Blackbeard the pirate. Blackbeard left his wife on one of the nearby islands promising he would come back. The shoals also contain many stories of lurking ghosts and spirits, like that of Blackbeard’s wife still waiting for his return. On Star Island its self is an old destination hotel, called The Oceanic, hence the chant.

The Oceanic hotel itself is a wonder to behold. It is large wooden structure with a large font porch that gives an excellent view of the ocean, the mainland, and other islands. There is a phrase for the accommodations simplicity though, Amish style. There is no television, waning phone service, and I have never heard live radio there. To use the internet you have to pay and head to a small shack tucked into an out of the way structure. It is a place made in simpler times, and is meant to promote a simpler experience.

One of the most revered places on the island is east rock, where the cold expansive ocean clashes with the small, but defiant, island. The waves coming to hit east rock are near relentless. They come forward out of the shapeless ocean and retreat once teir violence has subsided. Each wave, in its slow rolling labor, steadily changes the very island’s eastern face. Watching this makes you feel that the wind move not only moves through your hair, but your heart as well. I was stunned by the magnificence of the view, but it would be nothing with out the warm presence of my peers.

Each year we have a bonfire. To be around that fire, is almost unreal. That flame is the place to share stories, secrets, food, and faith. Faith, that as long as we have that fire, and each other, we will be able to face the darkness around us. To explain more deeply, part of the point of the fire is to burn secrets. We write down on pieces of paper what we would like to overcome in our lives, like harmful personal boundaries, bad habits, and/or fears. I think we can find the strength to dare our selves to make such radical promises to ourselves is the community around us cast in shadow but still seen by the light of the fire.

Grocking is based on Robert A. Heinlein novel “Stranger in a Strange Land.”To grock, in the book, means to drink, and to live. Both in the sense of taking something into yourself with the intent of making it part of your being. A sort of communion. We have a ceremony where we share water as a group than walk around finding someone to talk to. When you find someone to grock with you talk to the person of experiences you’ve had with them, good and bad, and of how you see them as a person. It is a challenging, and often affirming experience for those involved. For me it a chance to be free with my affection for those around me, and often be met with the same regards. It was freeing and terrifying.

Place holder for final sentence.

Will be finished tommrow.