Beltane – In Irish mythology it marked the beginning of summer and was when cattle were driven out to the summer pastures. Rituals were performed to protect the cattle, crops and people, and to encourage growth. Special bonfires were kindled, and their flames, smoke and ashes were deemed to have protective powers. The people and their cattle would walk around the bonfire or between two bonfires, and sometimes leap over the flames or embers for extra protection.
Entering the grounds of Spring Awakening, I couldn’t help but feel the sense of celebration… Sure, every music festival feels that way, but this was one different. The fact that it was held mainly during the day, felt as if we were celebrating the new season. Much like the old Irish festival, all we want is to enjoy life and celebrate the sun as it finally sets for longer than it sleeps. The great thing about our generation, and Spring Awakening, is that we have incredibly stages, fun rides, beautiful light shows, refreshing drinks, bomb fireworks and of course out-of-this-world music!
This year SAMF celebrated 5 years of life. It celebrated a new location. It celebrated music. It celebrated love for one another. It celebrated life. For a lot of us summer started long ago, and to some lucky ones winter never came, but Spring Awakening awoke something within us as we walked the grounds… carpe diem. To live each day and enjoy each day to the fullest. It was our fist time at SAMF and it was the first music festival of our date, Oliva. It was the perfect first for us both!
Olivias 1st festival and our first silent disco!!!! 👯 #Snapchat: alxprp 👻
A photo posted by Alex Paredes (@alexjparedes) on
The silent disco kicked off our SAMF weekend, never been to one and couldn’t wait to. So much fun and so crazy how something so small, in comparison to the festival it self, can bring so much joy! Literally, if you ever get the chance to go to one, do it! After our silent experience we leaped from stage to stage to live each vibe, each energy, each love. SAMF did a great job at keeping everything close and organized, it allowed us to go from stage to stage without having to walk very far. Major bonus: mist areas were placed in a couple of areas between stages and! “cooling” buses so people could escape the heat. Also! free water stations!
Spring Awakening rocked it’s 3 days and it rocked our weekend! An incredible moment was witnessing the love for those lost early that day in Orlando and the support from all attendees. With that, we hope that Spring Awakening, our new Beltame, will bring love and peace, will keep our loved ones safe and healthy, will keep our lives filled with happiness and strength, and will protect us for years to come! And in true Beltame tradition, we’ll see you next year Spring Awakening!!
**All images were provided by Spring Awakening.
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