On August 2, 2014 in conjunction with Rolla Birth Network’s annual MamaFest event, Brigid’s Grove is sponsoring the Missouri Premiere of Things We Don’t Talk About: Women’s Voices from the Red Tent.  I am thrilled to bring this film to Missouri and I hope many, many woman come to enjoy the Red Tent atmosphere during MamaFest. We aren’t just showing the film though, we’re also having a real Red Tent event with free activities available from 4-8:00 (film itself from 6-8:00). We will also have our Brigid’s Grove jewelry booth set up with some new options for building your own charm bracelet (either European charms or traditional charms) for very affordable prices, as well as our line of unique pewter goddess and birth art pendants.

Red Tents are safe spaces for all women that transcend religious/cultural/political barriers and just be about coming together in sacred space as women. While I personally have a Goddess-oriented perspective, Red Tents honor the “womanspirit” present within all of us. Within the safety and sacredness of the Red Tent, women’s experiences across the reproductive spectrum are “held” and acknowledged, whatever those experiences might be. (As well as menopause, menstruation, assault, grief, loss, etc.—it definitely isn’t just pregnancy related!)

In our Red Tent at MamaFest, we will have free jewelry making, henna tattoos, tea, and bindis. I have a mini ceremony/ritual to do before the film starts, the film screening itself, and then a scarf dance and song to close it out. This is meant to be an inclusive setting/experience for women of many backgrounds and beliefs!

You can learn more about the film and about Red Tents in general by checking out filmmaker Dr. Isadora Leidenfrost’s YouTube channel.

I’ve also written some Red Tent themed posts on my Talk Birth blog in the past:

Tuesday Tidbits: Red Tent

Red Tent Resources

Tuesday Tidbits: Pregnant Woman

100 Things List!