The Dandelion Daily

Recent community gatherings across Devon have earned high praise from those taking part, with no negative feedback to report. In Ashburton, singers joined the Over the Moon (Drop-in Community) Choir at the Town Hall. Designed for local community members wanting to sing together, the session earned appreciation for its roomy hall, welcoming atmosphere and patient teaching, which quickly had attendees enjoying singing in harmony.

Meanwhile, nature lovers gathered in a field at Yeoland near Totnes for From the Ground Up: Soil Workshops at Yeoland. Participants valued the rare chance to explore the earth under a three-dimensional microscope alongside an expert university professor, observing creatures such as mites and springtails, and they asked for more events like it. Further north at Ash Mill near South Molton, the INTENSIVE 1 or 2 DAY KAP & NON DUAL IMMERSION RETREAT welcomed those seeking spiritual practice, drawing praise for its supportive, safe setting.

Several new movement and dance gatherings have been added to the local listings. In Totnes, Trancendance: First Contact at the Jamming Station on Coronation Road offers four hours of tuneful progressive beats for people looking to come stomping. Nearby, the Friday Night Dance Festive Drop-In at Harberton Parish Hall combines somatic movement, music and improvisation. Run by Leela Fisk, the session welcomes past participants from the last 13 years alongside newcomers interested in trying the termly group.

Up the road at the Moor Imagination Centre on Chapel Street in Buckfastleigh, Relational Reflections Across Plural Worlds is an exploratory movement workshop. It uses creative movement, sensory exploration and guided improvisation to look at how languages, geographies and identities shape the way we move and relate. The session requires no previous dance experience, features no set choreography, and is open to all bodies and backgrounds.

A varied run of gatherings is on the cards across South Devon. In Totnes, women are invited to don their witch, goddess or wild outfits for WILD POWER: A SAMHAIN GATHERING at The Hairy Barista. The evening brings women together to build an ancestor altar with Anouska Beckwith, share a seasonal plant-based meal by A Taste of Nutmeg, and take to the floor for dancing with DJ Kelda.

Just up the road in Buckfastleigh, the Moor Imagination Centre hosts HEATHENS!, a double bill of poetic chaos pairing former Grand Bard of Exeter Jackie Juno with Northern Irish comedian and poet Edward Tripp, with non-pagans welcome in the audience. Back in Totnes, music fills St Mary's Church as Martha Tilston and Dartsong Chorus present an evening of song and Christmas cheer, collecting funds for a local charity.