Souls That Cry For Water
Moments in the Flow…The Holy Wells and Water Purity Issues Now
Hello again,
A growing theme in the news here in the US involves issues surrounding water. As I watch our administration take away the water protection laws and AI Data Centers waiting to be built with citizen protests involving their irreversible damaging use of water resources, a childhood memory floated into awareness.
I must have been about 5 years old when my mother and I were on one of many trips we took to Miami to see my grandmother. This time, I’m standing in Grandma’s living room while my Uncle Jack sits across from me, playing his guitar.
Most of the time I was living in Flatbush with my northern family who were not strumming and singing country music. This must be why that image is still so vivid. And so are the tune and lyrics to a song he was singing, “Old Dan and I with throats burned dry and souls that cry for water. Cool, clear Water.*” And I remember feeling anxious listening to the images of suffering.
My area is in a drought now. I’m waiting for the days of rain they say we’re going to have this week to finally show up. I’m not alone as the rest of creation around me is waiting, too. And apart from allowing forever chemicals and anything else to be in the drinking water in the US, many areas of the world are having a relationship with water that fluctuates from drought to flood and back again.
Yesterday I came upon an article about the Women of ancient times who tended the Holy Wells. Of course, these were Priestesses and they existed all over the world. The Holy Wells were more than a source of pure water. The wells themselves might manifest differently, but not all wells that are dug deep and yield water will have the ‘holy’ or ‘healing’ designation.
Would we be in better relationship to Water if we still had the presence of the Divine Feminine and the Priestesses who offered healing and sustenance to travelers at the holy wells?
I’ve been to a few in England and Wales. There is a documented count of these sacred healing wells in the UK. Statistical information: Current records show a total of 2733 holy wells in Britain, and 700 documented in Wales, hundreds of old healing wells are still found across Scotland. 49 are on the Isle of Man. Around 19% of these wells have been destroyed, roughly 63% still exist, and the remaining 18% have been lost.
My favorite is the beautiful Chalice Well in the gardens at the foot of the Glastonbury Tor. This location has a dedicated group of female well-tenders. You can find them on Facebook and take part in their ceremonies for the 8 festivals of the Celtic Year.
Not too far from Glastonbury is one of my favorite towns. Wells, in Somerset, is named for three sacred springs, called St. Andrew’s wells. They are located in the Bishop’s Palace Garden and flow into a moat. Wells Cathedral has bells that ring out the hours.
I haven’t heard of well-tenders there and none were seen at the two Holy Wells we visited on a tour of Wales. They were both less cultivated…one in a vast grassy field and the other on the side near the end of a one lane road on the western cliffs near St. David’s.
And though the US doesn’t keep a record, we do have healing springs and wells. And the Native Americans have had their sacred springs as well.
A couple of decades ago, I visited the hot tubs in Pagosa Springs, CO on a very cold day. When I moved to the SC foothills, I went once a year to the Hot Springs near the NC/Tennessee border. You could soak in jacuzzi tubs and bring a jug to fill from a piped source.
I was surprised to discover that there was a famous resort for Chick Springs in Taylors, SC not far from my home. The need for food at that resort required the railroad to come. The flow of travelers was interrupted by a war and a recession and the Resort eventually closed. The Spring itself remains, but in an unreachable location.
And there is a healing spring where you can fill a bottle with water on the grounds of Montreat in Black Mountain, NC, that became known for hosting Billy Graham and his followers.
No women were tending these sites as they would have in the ancient days…
In Revealing the Druid Legacy, Merlin takes Anwen to see the last days of a circle of nine at Glastonbury Tor and she visits Chalice Well. She does some scrying in the water, then receives a vision of the White Lady who frequents this and other places. It is a pleasant interlude. And on their journey to the West, Merlin takes her to a holy well not far from the town where he was born.
Here is an excerpt from Book One, The Last Priestess.
So, in light of my concerns, I guess I need to do a ceremony myself for the water situation and send love and a positive vision for our relationship with the Water Nation to improve. If you Google or otherwise search for ‘women who tended the ancient wells’ or well maidens, you will find many articles to read.
Ahhhh—a miracle of synchronicity. Writing over, a gentle, light rain has arrived…getting a bit stronger now.
See you next time! As always I welcome your comments and questions. I appreciate your sharing or restacking this article so others can see it, too. I also appreciate every tap that falls on the heart icon ✨❤️✨
*Lyrics Cool Water, written in 1936 and recorded by the Sons of the Pioneers in 1941.
<< Yesterday I came upon an article about the Women of ancient times who tended the Holy Wells. >> I wonder how many cultures share this tradition in one form or another. I recently read about "Miriam's Well," which was said to have sustained Israelites in the desert for most of their forty-year stay. [Miriam was the sister of Moses and a prophet in her own right.]
Excellent work, I'm glad you covered this.