Colorado 2022 Rainbow Gathering

This is an amazing performance my friends have written and produced. If you go to the gathering, you'll be able to see it live, but in the meantime, here's a recording of it from 2011.

Following Standing Rock, the saying Water is Life or Mni Wiconi in Lakota has become a familiar saying.  Most of us know what that means in relationship to the struggle to protect water sources from pipelines, but how many of us really understand what that means in relationship to the gathering? When people scout for a gathering location, they always look for sources of water that can keep our camp alive.  Finding water is hard. Finding water that is uphill from where we want to gather is critical as gravity can help transport water to our population centers, kitchens, medical care, etc.  Protecting these water sources is important.  The water we drink keeps us alive, maintains our health, and can contribute to or prevent the spread of disease among gatherers. The Great Lakes region has lots of surface water, but that is not always the cleanest water for drinking and cooking. Making sure each and everyone has enough clean and safe water to drink is critical to maintaining your health

The raps are collective wisdom for gatherings that have been written down. Some of the raps were written 30 or more years ago. Other raps are more recent. One convention is to give the raps numbers. For example Rap 107 is called "Gathering Basics" and is designed for a someone coming home to learn the most critical ideas concepts. Sometimes, folks at the gathering print the raps on paper and pass them out. For example the "Rap & Map" we often pass out at the gathering with a site map on one side and Rap 107/701 on the other. Rap 107 Sometimes,  people paint fabric with colorful renditions of one or more of the raps and then hang them at the gathering -- combing art and information. Sometimes, people post the raps online in various places for people to read before they come home. When Butterfly Bill was alive, he made a great collection of raps available on his website . That being said, the raps aren't set in stone and evolve as the times change. New raps ar

WE LOVE YOU: A Rainbow Gathering Documentary" from New Jersey Pictures on Vimeo .

When the gathering happens, we all come together from our scattered lives to form one big, messy community. But how does that work?  How do we create a community of equals from all the individual "I"s that show up? Here are some musings on how I and others I know have created community. You may have different ideas. Find your tribe. The annual gathering over July 4 is a "gathering of the tribes."  There are many tribes with different vibes. While all the tribes are my family and I love them all, I like some of the tribes more than others. Finding a tribe can be random: you bump into someone on the trail, a conversation starts, and you feel connected in the heart. Finding a tribe can be intentional: wander around the gathering, stop in at different camps and talk to people, feel the vibe in that camp and fall in love or at least connect with people who grock you. Finding a tribe can come out of shared workshops, late night drum circles, Shanti Sena movies, finding a

Today's guest post comes from a friend who sometimes goes by Scott Sowka but you may know him by other names as well. **************BEGIN GUEST POST******************** I have a lot of sympathy for what B....  was feeling in the OP. Sometimes, being the resident adult can stretch a person thin and drain the tanks. Definitely been there on more than one occasion. Having said that, ... I'm going to push an alternate rap here. Gatherings aren't safe. They aren't fun. They never have been. Their purpose was never to be an escape with your friends, and their reality has always been less than ideal. If you were under the false impression that they were those things, it was because you were caught up in the magic, temporarily blinded by the mind-blowing experience of existing in a real community built on unconditional love, and coddled by our elders, who selflessly worked behind the scenes to craft the culture. The truth is, there have always been cops, violent people, alcohol

Just an FYI, no one speaks for the gathering and there are as many different opinions as there are gatherers. Six years ago, a gatherer did a training for those new to the gathering. This is the video tape of that training called Rainbow Gathering 101 .

One of my friends has a great blog called Kitchens of Rainbow . Screen shot of Kitchens of Rainbow Blog Here's an excerpt from a great post on The Belly Buttons of Rainbow . The purpose of the Kitchens of Rainbow was originally to help very disparate sections of Rainbow get to know a little more about each other, to give voice to the heartsongs of folks rarely asked. Even at Rainbow it can be easy to gravitate only towards the people you vibe with and see those who aren’t like you as “other.” It’s also remarkably easy to assume by looking at someone that we know something about their values, their beliefs, and what’s important to them. And while this may be especially true of the divide between “shanti rainbows” and “dirty kids,” it happens with other demographics as well.

This great explanation of the gathering comes from MC She, recorded at the Colorado July 4th Gathering in 2006. A friend of mine has an amazing website called Sounds From The Rainbow , where this and other amazing recordings exist.

There is a wonderful collection of Rainbow Chant's at Butterfly Bill's website include a handy PDF that you can download.