The following are a series of poems written by Uncle Hyena, and he has given permission to post them on this site. If you are at a loss of what to do for the Sabbats, you may want to consider reciting these...if you're feeling creative, you may want to try to put them to music. In fact, if you do write music for them, we'd love to hear your creations and I will post them here as well.

Enjoy, and you can directly contact Uncle Hyena on the College Wicca Forum!

Samhain | Yule | Imbolc | Spring Equinox

Beltane | Litha | Lughnasadh | Fall Equinox

I) Samhain/ Hallow E'en/ October 31

Year's End

If you would go abroad tonight, choose your path with care,
For the walls between the worlds are down, and there's magic in the air.

The old year ends at set of sun; the new begins at break of day,
And in between the walls come down, and a far more ancient Law holds sway.

The Wild Hunt rides for love of speed and lets its prey run free;
The Green Man walks and calls the spirits forth from every tree.

The folk from out the hollow hills will dance 'till break of day,
And the one-eyed stranger at the door should NOT be turned away.

Don't try to break the fairy ring, or chase the Wild Hunt on its track;
You just might reach your goal tonight, if you don't mind not coming back.

The restless dead and stranger things are on the roads tonight;
If you meet that one-eyed traveler, be sure that you're polite.

The walls between the worlds are down as the old year fades away,
And EVERYTHING is possible from set of sun 'till break of day.

Paul Haynie
10/30/2000

Yule Fire

Outside these walls, the White Death crawls
And tears the world asunder,
Yet here tonight the fire is bright
And life is filled with wonder.

There will be time to curse the rime,
To moan and tighten belts,
To watch the skies with frozen eyes
And pray the damned ice melts,
But here tonight the fire is bright,
The board is full, the wine flows free,
So let us dance and let us love
Beside the burning Yuletide tree.

Outside these walls, the White Death crawls
And hunts throughout the longest night-
But we will laugh, and love, and LIVE!
Beside the Yule Tree burning bright.

Paul Haynie
12/02/2000

We brought the light from the Darkness;
We brought the fire from the cold;
Though our deeds of valor are many,
It's our deeds of betrayal you're told.

They tell you we're not to be trusted;
That our way can bring only pains;
But THEY think you're nothing but cattle,
And we want you free of your chains.

We taught you to stand on your own legs;
We gave you language and tools;
We would have you find freedom in danger,
Not wallow in safety like fools.

We know that the Light needs the Darkness
Just as much as the Darkness needs Light;
Our way winds and twists through the twilight,
With no end to the journey in sight!

Paul Haynie
2/3/01

IV) Equinox/ Lady Day/ March 21

Equinox

The green-eyed woman sits and waits
Upon her ivy-covered throne;
The tall man turns his sole gray eye
To those he's chosen as his own.
The green man pauses in his track;
The huntress rests upon her spear,
And the world hangs in the balance
At the turning of the year.

The gray-eyed woman grooms her owl
And watches from her lofty seat;
The golden harper stills his strings
And listens to Gaia's slow heart beat.
The Great Smith holds his hammer still;
The Trickster halts his games of chance,
And the balance swings through center
At the turning of the dance.

Paul Haynie
4/6/01

V) Beltane/ May Day/ May 1

Piper's Fire

The bale fire writhes beneath the sky;
The oak logs burn; the fire leaps high;
The shadows dance, and pool, and spill
In cascades down the fire crowned hill.
It matters not what brought you here, pious choice or random chance;
You'll hear the Master Piper play, and when you do, you, too, will dance.
Tonight there is no foe, nor feud; we'll leave such things for other days.
Tonight we are the human clan; we dance because the music plays.
So dance for love and dance for life;
Clear your mind of daily strife;
Take a lover; make a friend;
All too soon the dance will end.
There is no prize for holding back when Bacchus calls the Piper's tune;
It's madness NOT to join the dance while bale fire burns beneath the moon.
For while we dance the world is young, and so, my friend, are you and I:
From set of sun 'til break of day while bale fire burns beneath the sky.
And with the dawn the fire will die,
And saner light will fill the sky...
But we have heard the Pan's pipes play
From set of sun 'til break of day.

Paul Haynie
4/30/01

VI) Summer Solstice/ June 21

Solstice

When the soggy Spring has ended,
And the sun is riding high,
And the Summer King's a father
With no clue he's soon to die,
Then the people of the Rede
Take a rest from daily toil
To laugh and dance and run bare feet
Through briefly sacred soil.
The May Queen's now a Mother;
The Yule Queen's now the Crone;
And last year's May Queen is reborn
And waits year's end to claim her own.
The planting is well ended,
And the harvest's far away;
There's no war on the horizon
To spoil a poor man's day.
Spend a moment in the moment
Underneath the summer sky
And dream of endless summer
While the sun is riding high.

Paul Haynie
6/21/2001

On errantry in Faerie, up from the mortal coast,
I spent the night at Bifrost's foot, in sight of Heimdahl's post.
I met a one-eyed traveler who told me an odd tale,
And the words he spoke that morning set my face against the gale.
Oh, there's glory in the offing when the Ravenlord says, "Go!",
But the chance you'll come safe home again is heartbreakingly low.
From Niffleheim to Midgard I have wandered on my quest,
With but small hope of succeeding, and precious little rest,
For you really can't malinger when the Stormbringer says, "Now!";
Though you shirk and dodge and waffle, you'll be going anyhow.
I've fought trolls and dealt with dragons, vanquished giants on my way;
Lost too many stout companions to the hazards of the fray;
Yes, there's bound to be a slaughter when the Gallows Lord says, "Here!"
And the surest way of dying is to hold your life too dear.
Ah, well... When the game is over, whether I have won or lost,
I'm sure of my safe passage home; I've long since paid that cost:
A redhead on a winged horse will pull me on behind;
We'll take the long way coming home, and nobody will mind.
Yes, you're bound for a big finish when the All Father says, "You!"
But as Hero, or as Villain? That, my friend, is up to you.

Paul Haynie
6/25/01

VIII) Equinox/ Harvest Home/ September 21

Wild Geese and Woodsmoke

The days are getting shorter and the geese are on the wing,
And there's just a trace of woodsmoke in the air,
And I just can't help but wonder if my life means anything,
And the drudgery seems more than I can bear.

I don't object to comfort, but I know there's just one cure
For the restless feeling in my soles and soul,
As I stare into the mirror and I wish I could be sure
I'm not looking at another faceless troll.

Have I faced my share of dragons? Have I fought my share of wars?
Can I say the scars I carry are enough?
Or have I become a creature who shuns the out of doors,
And whimpers when the bedclothes are too rough?

The wild geese sing their siren song of places far away
And the woodsmoke speaks of campfires yet unbuilt;
The bright boots in the corner should be caked with muddy clay,
And my fingers ache to grasp a weapon's hilt.

There are roads I've yet to travel; there are seas I've yet to sail;
There are fights and loves I've still to win and lose,
And I know I won't rest easy 'till I'm camped beside the trail
With dust that's unfamiliar on my shoes.

So I go about my business, and pretend that I don't hear,
And settle for the peace that I can get,
While the woodsmoke fills my head and whispers of the coming year,
And the wild geese sing that it's not over yet.

Paul Haynie 5/29/2003