Honoring those who have returned to the current
Each huddle keeps a Well of Names – a physical or digital record of disciples who have died. During the Huddle of the Longest Night (winter solstice), the names are read aloud. The living press together, and for each name, someone shares a memory: a warmth that person added to the weave.
Choose a vessel – a bowl, a jar, a notebook. Place it in a place of honor within your meeting space. When a disciple dies, write their name on a stone, a slip of paper, or a wooden coin and place it in the vessel. Every time the huddle gathers, you may silently touch the vessel in remembrance.
Once a year, gather around the Well. Light a single candle. One by one, take a name and speak aloud something that person taught you. Then pour a small amount of water (or melt a piece of ice) into the well, saying: “You have returned to the current. You are still with us.”
After all names are spoken, the huddle presses together in silence for as long as the candle burns. This is not a mourning of absence, but a celebration of enduring warmth.