Lantern Walk 2013, Friday November 15th.
NEW LOCATION ~ NEW DIRECTIONS
Start at River Song…walk to the park
SAME SONGS ~ SAME SPIRIT
We will serve warm bread and hot cider in the back yard from 5:45-6:00. You will find your child’s
lantern in their classroom and take it outside. PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN LIGHTERS OR MATCHES.
At approximately 6:00 the teachers will gather everyone at the gate and light the teachers
lanterns only. Teachers will sing one song and say our lantern verse.
We will all leave through the gate together and walk to Indian Hills Park. This is a time for
chatting if you wish, we will not be singing yet. This is a familiar routine for the children, they
know to stay on the sidewalk (and so should we adults, as they will follow us) and not to run
ahead of the leaders.
Once we get to the crossing area we will ask that everyone light their own lanterns and quiet
their children.
We will cross the street in a group.
As we enter the luminaria path the singing will begin and we ask that the children walk quietly
singing and stay with their parents.
You will be able to complete the loop as many times as you wish.
There will be a path to the left to exit when you are ready. You will make your way back to the
school and your car on your own and there will be no formal gathering at the end.
It is our hope that the reverent atmosphere we create together will stay with you as you journey home.
Lantern Walk is our festival of Martinmas which celebrates St. Martin of Tours (316-397 AD).
One story of St. Martin is that of meeting a poor beggar at the city gate, who was shivering in
the cold. Martin drew his sword and cut his own cloak in two and gave one half to the
beggar. Martin’s half cloak brought hope and comfort to the beggar. His compassionate
gesture may warm us also, and protect us from wintry despair. We carry lanterns as a symbol
of the small light we can shine into the dark world. From All Year Round: Christian Calendar of
Celebrations (Festivals and the Seasons) by Ann Druitt
In the Waldorf tradition and here at River Song we celebrate this festival to recognize and
honor the truth and beauty that lives in each one of us. The lanterns remind us that we can
carry our own light into the darkest times (seasonally or spiritually). Our truth, our unique
purpose, is ever there to guide us and to be found by others. Or, as our teachers have so
beautifully expressed, “We come together to find strength in our recognition of each person’s
light, to find strength by truly seeing others. We find strength in seeing how brightly we can
light the way when we come together as a community.” In other words, through Lantern Walk,
we teach our children (and remind ourselves) of our own unique light that not only lights our
own way, but can be a beacon for anyone else who can see it.
Lantern Verse:
Candle in my lantern, glowing warm and bright, guide me through the darkness fill my heart with light.
Song 1:
I go with my little lantern, my lantern goes with me
In heaven the stars are shining , on earth are shining we
The cock does crow, the cat says meow , Ay –ee –oh
A bi-ma-l a ba-ma-la boom!
Song 2:
Glimmer lantern glimmer, little stars a shimmer,
over meadow, moor, and dale,
Flitter, flutter elfin veil, pee-witt, pee-witt, tick-a-tick-a tick, rou –cou, rou-cou