This Mother’s Day, May 13, Rhianna Mirabello, ritualist and creatrix at the Dreaming Goddess, in Poughkeepsie, will lead a water ceremony on the banks of the Hudson River. With this ceremony, Mirabello is recognizing the customs of the region’s indigenous people, who had a deep spiritual connection with the river and considered women to be its protectors.

“It was common among indigenous peoples, including Native Americans, for women to be the guardians of the water, as we all come from the waters of our mother’s womb, our bodies are made up primarily of water, and we cannot exist without clean water from our Mother Earth,” Mirabello says. “There are women among us who continue to honor this tradition.”

The Algonquin-speaking tribes who originally inhabited the Hudson Valley called the river Mahicantuck, which means “the river that flows two ways.” As a result of the Hudson’s unique flow, merging of salt and fresh water, it has an ecosystem unlike any in the world, with marine life found nowhere else.

“It is my vision to stand with the intention of the indigenous people and to support and foster stewardship of Mother Earth and her waters, here at our riverfront, by joining our hearts in powerful prayer,” Mirabello says. The ceremony is open to all who wish to offer their prayers “for the water, for each other, for the world and for the highest good of all.”

For more info, visit DreamingGoddess.com, email [email protected] or call the shop at 845.473.2206.