Midwinter Ceremony

by Chief Slays a Fox (Steven Weinacht) (in-game)
on Tue Jan 17 22:20:44 2012

Chief Slays a Fox invites the town of Holdfast to join in celebration of the Bear tribe Midwinter Ceremony. The Ceremony will be held on the 50th day of the Cycle of Ice, 1612. The festival will be held in our timber hall and barrow, but Lord Carnifex has graciously offered to lend some of his people to aide in serving the citizens of Holdfast so that the members of the local tribe may spend more time with their family.

When the Great Bear appears in the sky directly overhead, we wait for the New Moon to be seen. This is when the spiritual year begins. We then wait 5 days after the new moon to begin the ceremony. The celebration lasts for 9 days with many traditional events, as well as the choosing of new council members for the next year. The first day of the celebration is traditionally a time when we invite our friends and neighbors to join us.

Chief Slays a Fox would like to invite the citizens of Holdfast to join him and his clan of the Bear Tribe to this grand event.

You will witness traditional dances, offerings to the Spirits and the Creator, games, and you may even be asked to take part in the Dreamsharing ceremony.

As we settle into the heart of winter, we take stock of what we have, what we need, and the needs of our friends and family. With that in mind you will be asked to join in our Barter Auction. Nothing goes to waste in winter and this auction reflects that. A member of the tribe will stand and present an item that has served them well but they do not need at the time. Other members of the tribe will then offer up their own possessions in exchange for what is offered. Money may be offered, but the winner is the one who has the items most appealing or useful to the presenter. You can bid anything! Boots, socks, cloaks, food, blankets, preserved fruit! Feel free to bid whatever you like.

At this time, we also honor our craftsmen and artists at this time of snows when we have so much time to admire what they have created. In celebration of this, we will hold a Celebration of Craftsmanship and invite our guests to participate with a warm heart. Items of all trades, from armor and jewelry to masks and weapons, will be accepted. These items will be displayed in a place of prominence to be admired by all. All present will then vote on the item which holds the most merit to them, and the creator of the item will be well rewarded.

With these traditional events, we have also arranged for games of chance more well known to our city-dwelling friends.