What a delicious and intense post-Firefly come down this year! It was the smoothest and most satisfying earthskills gathering of my life. And that is saying something, because since 2009, I have attended an estimated 50+ earthskills events (specifically) in the southeast.
So even though it was especially traumatic this year to leave the authentic bubble of creative connection and communal flow and re-enter this dystopian “reality” of billionaire inspired genocides, mounting world-wide climate catastrophes, and ICE-run concentration camps; I am tending a small but fierce coal of hope that came home with me from the gathering this year. This hope is what carries me through the shadow-time that as a species, we find ourselves collectively in right now.
Some Seeds Bearing Fruit
The hope – prayer even – that I carry forward, is for a truly just and compassionate world for us all to coexist within: plants, animals, the land and her people: all together as one. Years ago, Firefly started to lean into the injustices we saw all around us. In 2010, The Beehive Collective came and brought their billboard sized mural, illustrating The True Cost of Coal. In 2015 our first Community Equity Advocate, Isa Whitaker, was hired and we planted seeds and co-conspired; knowing that the time would one day come when we would see our worlds coalesce. In 2022, we opened up The Neighborhood and hosted our first Block party.
We experienced a taste of the fulfillment of this prayer this year. While we recognize the work is ongoing and there is much more to be done, we are celebrating a very special Firefly Gathering 2025; and we’re left asking some very profound questions. Namely: why? What was it about this event that was so rich?
First off, we had a solid and qualified staff, amazing instructors, a sweet land host, epic worktraders, an amazing cast of evening entertainers, and so much more. But what I have really been able to distill my own experience down to is this: for the first time ever, my social needs were met at an earthskills gathering. This may seem strange after 50+ gatherings. Indeed, it has been strange for me, too; but it makes sense.
I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, a very diverse and metropolitan place, full of unique cultures and a wide array of languages, beliefs, perspectives and orientations. All wrapped in a cloak of respect and activism around PGM and LGBTQIA+ recognition and rights. As a white, (mostly) straight female, I was often in the minority in social circles and school settings. I personally feel more at home and in my authentic flow when I have a diverse community around me – definitely not into monoculture!
How We Got Here
This is where the importance of The EQT Fund, The Neighborhood, and all of the work that we have been doing for years to make The Firefly Gathering a unique and truly inclusive and diverse gathering are starting to bear fruit. I have never been in such an authentic earthskills space with people from their original cultures bringing their offerings, and so much authentic, heartfelt expression.
YES to Unity, NO to Monoculture:
The event kicked off with The Murmuration Collective’s crankie show, a beautiful tribute to all that was lost to Hurricane Helene. It was welcomed with a reminder of how powerful the times are that we are in: as the show was being set up on the main stage, a gail-force wind blew through the white pine grove, topping a tall tree which fell on the truck of a staff member whose partner and baby were inside seeking shelter from the storm. They are ok, but their truck sustained serious damage. As we evacuated the white pine grove, we were once again reminded that monocultures – be they human or botanical – are not safe places. Having relocated to the barn, we grieved together as we collectively remembered and relived the tragedy of Helene, and honored the lives lost on September 27, 2024.
This awe-thenticity continued throughout the event. From Bigwitch and The Original People sharing their wisdom and traditional foods from Cherokee; to Adama Dembele bringing his authentic West African energy and flavor to our drum circles; to Heena Patel bringing her cultural dances from India; to the Hip-Hop tent at the Blockparty and the epic freestyle circles that spontaneously erupted with Teso McDonald, Isa Whitaker, Becomyth and more; to the Lebanese food brought by Habibi Village and the Palestinian food at the Blockparty…I could go on and on…there was even Queer theater! There was enough authentic representation from diverse communities and perspectives throughout the event, that we can finally proclaim: Gay-la-lujah–the earthskills monoculture has been broken!
While we see the long road ahead of us, we have a renewed vigor and passion, as our fires have been stoked from nice little crackling embers, into blazing and roaring infernos! We have tasted UNITY, and we will continue to push back against oppressive forces and make space for “others,” knowing there really is no other, and we are all truly ONE. And for those who say we have strayed from the true essence of earthskills, I will repeat what was stated at one morning circle:
‘If you say that this isn’t an earthskills gathering anymore, or that Firefly has become too political, we say maybe it’s time to diversify your friend groups. Because right now women’s rights are under attack. PGM rights are under attack. Immigrant rights are under attack. LGBTQIA+ rights are under attack. So, if you’re not feeling the pressure of what is happening in the world around us and right here in our own country, then maybe it’s because your friend circle doesn’t include any of these groups under attack. Which means you are living in a monoculture; which is a very unnatural and unstable environment. Perhaps it’s time to diversify your own life.’
Thank you, Firefly Gathering Attendees:
At every Annual Firefly Gathering, I am washed in a sea of gratitude from the attendees, and I truly relish the experience! This year there was a different flavor to the gratitude, and it was also expressed over and over. It is summed up in this attendee’s words sent after the event:
“THANK YOU FOR YOUR BOLDNESS. You are truly an ally who uses your platform in a way that allows us in marginalized communities to feel safe and seen. Thank you for holding space for us and speaking in a way that takes the emotional labor off of us.”
The essence of the majority of the gratitude expressed to me this year broke my heart open in such a tender and beautiful way, and it was simply this: Thank you for making space for us here.
The profundity of so many folks thanking me for such a basic human right: making space for their existence to simply be ok…. AND at a gathering that celebrates ancestral skills – many of which come from the cultures that these people also descend from. The irony, the bittersweet joy of this journey haunts me in a poetic and profound way, and renews my commitment to this work, stoking the fires of my soul’s passion. Thank you, everyone who helped make this truly a magical and unforgettable gathering!
Yours Embedded in The Mystery,
Marissa Percoco | Firefly Gathering ED
