Start Of A New Year

HERNANDO BEACH - For their most sacred holiday of the year, a small group of modern-day witches gathered in the back yard of a canalside home Wednesday night to honor their ancestors and to welcome a new year with chanting and singing, dancing and drumming.

In Wiccan circles, Samhain (pronounced sow-inn) marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. Followers believe it's a time when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest, making it easier to communicate and honor their ancestors.

This west Pasco-based coven, led by high priestess Teri Gurnell of Hudson, opened its Samhain ritual with an invitation to the spirits of earth, air, fire and water to join in and lend their energy. Gurnell is known in the pagan community as "Dragon."

Members gathered in a circle around a small altar adorned with candles. They took turns leading chants, ringing a bell and reading.

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