Worshipping the Ancestors

Sometimes, it's just synchronicity and nothing less. Recently I went shopping at a very nice cigar shop that I had never before been in to purchase some loose tobacco. I was preparing for a ritual in which I planned to honor my Native American ancestors and at first I held back when answering the shop owner's question as to what exactly I was looking for and why (clearly I looked more than a bit out of my element in his shop). I am generally cautious with strangers when explaining myself, not because I am in any way ashamed to be forthright in who I am and what I believe in, but because to be honest, you never know how the other person might react. Still, after a moment's hesitation, I just came out with it and said, "I need loose tobacco of the highest quality for a Native American rite." Without a pause, he handed me a small packet of pure, organic tobacco for just that purpose, and added a very warm and friendly smile along with it.

I bought my needed item and then wandered about the shop looking into the humidors. My beloved Uncle Fred was a cigar salesman for many, many decades but oddly as soon as I went looking for the maker he worked for, I suddenly couldn't remember their name. When the shop owner asked if there was anything else he could help me with, I mentioned that my uncle worked for a cigar company but for the life of me, I could not remember the name of it. He asked my uncle's name and when I told him, he immediately pointed across the shop to the humidor I was looking for. He said he knew my uncle and that upon meeting him for the first time he instantly recognized my uncle for the amazing man he was. He added that my Uncle Fred was considered a legend in the cigar business, one of the most well-respected men in the industry who everyone loved and admired. I agreed, saying that he was also an amazing man in our family's life and is very sadly missed. He told me some Fred stories and I shared a few of my own.

As I was leaving I realized that not only was I going to be honoring some of my ancestors at the next full moon, but that I had just honored another much adored ancestor with not a single prop and with no formal ritual whatsoever. Two complete strangers connected with the only thing we had in common: my dear uncle and the joy he brought to both of us and the way he touched each of our lives in his own special way.

I went into that shop with the intention of creating a moment of pure love for those who went before me and I did just that, in more ways than one. Perfect synchronicity.