Home, Heart & Harmony: Within the Sacred Fire Community

When was the last time you felt a deep connection to nature—perhaps as a child discovering a four-leaf clover, a teenager caught in summer rain, or a young adult pausing to breathe in the crisp morning air? For many of us, those moments of communion with the living world have become rare. Yet, there are still places where that connection burns bright—one of them is Sacred Fire.

Sacred Fire is an international organization rooted in ancient wisdom, dedicated to rekindling the human relationship with nature, spirit, and community. Each month, local gatherings around a consecrated fire invite people to slow down, listen deeply, and share openly. In Greensboro, the Sacred Fire community has become a sanctuary for connection—what one participant calls “a home away from home.”

 

Coming Home to the Fire

For Michael Ward, co-founder of Kinetic Roots Wellness and Greensboro Holistic Collective member, the path to Sacred Fire began years ago through his studies in metaphysics and energy work. “My Reiki teacher invited me to attend,” he recalls. “It was appealing because it honored indigenous traditions and the spirit of fire itself.”

What struck him most was the feeling upon arrival. “You’re met with welcoming comments and embraces before taking your seat,” he says. “Once the ceremony begins, there’s a noticeable shift from the mundane to the sacred—it feels like coming home.”

Michael describes the gatherings as places where people from all walks of life meet with compassion and curiosity. “I’ve learned how to hold space for others’ expression and opinions, even when they don’t align with my own,” he says. “That’s a powerful kind of growth.”

Over time, the fire has become a teacher, offering lessons in leadership and presence. “Not everyone shares the same culture or beliefs,” he reflects, “but we can still gather in community to find commonalities.” For Michael,  Deer Thicket Sanctuary, where the local fires are held, is “a refuge from the divisive world that surrounds us.”

 

The Fire as Shelter

For Athena Hatch, the draw to attend her first community fire was simple—and deeply personal. “I wanted to sit around a fire,” she says. “It reminded me of sitting with my grandparents when I was a child. Less about the people, more about the fire—that’s what pulled me in.”

Now training to become a Firekeeper herself, Athena speaks of the fire with reverence and comfort. “It feels like coming home—not with people, but with the land and elements. In a world that feels so unsafe, it feels like a bomb shelter. Protected.”

When she sits before the flames, Athena finds peace in the simplicity of being. “There’s something beautiful about watching the fire dance,” she says. “It’s like the fire smudges the group, cleansing us.”

Through the community, Athena has rediscovered her own generosity and confidence. “These gatherings helped me find my courage—to ask people if they’d like my help, to speak in front of others, to be vulnerable.” She pauses, then adds, “It’s deepened my sense of belonging—of being accepted. It’s broadened my capacity for myself and for others.”

 

Guardians of the Flame

Christine Staub and her husband have been tending Greensboro’s Sacred Fire for two decades. As trained and initiated Firekeepers within the international Sacred Fire organization, they hold a lineage of connection that stretches back through time.

“Coming together around a consecrated Fire may be the oldest known form of human support and connection,” Christine explains. “For most of human history, Fire was recognized as a spiritual presence. The Huichol peoples of Mexico, for example, have kept this awareness alive for thousands of years.”

Firekeepers are entrusted with guiding participants through a process of offering and reflection—acts of gratitude and exchange that invoke qualities such as courage, wisdom, transformation, and new beginnings. “We’ve seen again and again how people leave our fires feeling heard, seen, calmer, and inspired,” Christine says. “They often build relationships that extend into their daily lives.”

For her, tending the fire is not merely a role—it’s a lifelong commitment. “Being a Firekeeper is a calling,” she states with intent. “We are grateful for the opportunity to serve our community in this way.”

 

The Circle Continues

Each Sacred Fire gathering is different, yet they share a common heartbeat: the warmth of belonging. Stories, laughter, and silence mingle under the open sky. The fire becomes both mirror and teacher—reminding those who sit before it of their connection to each other and to the earth itself.

As Michael puts it, “The fire supports my growth. It helps me remember that even in a divided world, there are still places where we can come together.”

In that circle of light and warmth, surrounded by friends and strangers alike, participants of the Greensboro Sacred Fire find what so many seek—a sense of home, of heart, of harmony.

“Grandfather says that we need to learn how to express our emotions appropriately and let them move fluidly in order to achieve balance in our lives on a personal, community, and societal level.”  – Huichol Shaman