Summer Solstice Revival
This was the first year of the Revival festival, put on by the Divine Assembly of Utah. As festivals go, it was fairly tame, which I think had partly to do with the crowd attracted, as well as the intention behind the event. I consider myself to be an experienced festivalgoer. Having been to at least one festival per year, I somewhat know what to expect from the environment, and myself. That being said, The Divine Assembly is focused on healing, whereas the festivals I've been to previously were focused on art and music. This was Jess's first festival ever. She is a schoolteacher in her mid-twenties and was raised in a very LDS household. These were her thoughts.
Me: With this being your first festival, what was your overall impression?
Jess: I was surprised at how nice people were. You always come in with preconceived notions about certain people who do certain things, but I was very surprised that when I went, I was incredibly welcomed, and that I was extremely respected, and the atmosphere was very kind.
Me: What do you mean, certain impressions about people who do certain things?
Jess: I think there is this stigma around Burners that they are drug addicts or that they are not there [mentally]. There is that stigma around Burners, and I guess I'd fallen into that trap, of like putting people into a category. So, when I went there, I was pleasantly surprised that I was wrong. That what I thought was Burners, what I thought was Festivals, was completely wrong.
Me: Where do you think you got this idea of stigmas from?
Jess: I think it's just the people I'm around, when they talk about it, and how it's perceived. I grew up largely LDS, and the stigma around it is so large. It's like 'these people are over-indulgent', and 'they go out and do things that you shouldn't do' stuff like that.
Me: You say "do the things you shouldn't do". Has this experience changed your perspective around that at all?
Jess: I think it's changed because there are things that I feel that I wouldn't do, but that doesn't mean you "shouldn't" do them. What I felt there at the festival was, you do you (whatever that is), and I'll do me (whatever that is).
Me: What I'm hearing is that your personal moral compass has been divorced now from the idea of a collective moral compass.
Jess: Yes, I'm very much less imposing my morals on the rest of the people without knowing other peoples' situations.
Me: What were you expecting, before going out there?
Jess: I was honestly expecting to be pressured into things that I didn't want to do; or judged for not doing those things. I said that I didn't want to do any [psilocybin] mushrooms or anything. I kind of thought that there would be persecution for that.
Me: Can you compare and contrast the pressure you felt at the festival with the pressure that you felt growing up in religion?
Jess: I didn't feel like there was any pressure at the festival. But there is always a lot of pressure around religion, to conform, to be the norm of society, to fall within the pack, I guess. When you're religious, there's this certain area that you have to be in, in order to be considered good, to be considered doing what you're supposed to. You have to be in this set. At the festival, there was a different mentality. Everyone, no matter how weird you are, no matter what you're doing, is involved in this set. Everyone can be here, and there's a whole range of people, and nobody cares.
Me: Do you think it was your religious upbringing that set the stage for that expectation you had going into the festival?
Jess: For sure. [Religious] people are judgey as hell. So whenever they talk about other people they often put a judgey air into it, or make it less than themselves.
Me: What was your favorite experience at the festival?
Jess: The adventure to find ice cream at the festival. I have never been in a community that was so willing to just help everyone out. Every time we asked, people weren't mad, they weren't looking down on us, they were just like "try this" or "try that". They were all just very enthusiastic about it.
Me: Do you think that you would consider going to a festival now that is a little less tame, now having this experience under your belt?
Jess: Probably not. I enjoyed this, and it was fun, but there were things I didn't enjoy. There was a large amount of people, and it was a little rambunctious for my taste, so there were some things which weren't my favorite. But I did enjoy it more than I thought I was going to.
Me: If you were to give any sort of words of wisdom or advice to somebody with your background and upbringing, who has probably the same hesitations about going to an event, what would you tell them?
Jess: That no one is going to do anything which is going to make you uncomfortable. And at any point, you can leave, and at any point, you can tell someone "no" and they'll leave you alone. And it's more fun than you think it will be. But it is hot, so bring sunscreen.
Me: Has going to this festival changed your viewpoint on you, personally, trying any substances in the future?
Jess: Maybe a little bit. I have things which of course, I'd be worried about. But I have thought about it more than I have in the past. I'm a little more open, and a little less judgey to people who do it.
Me: Did you make any personal connections to anybody else there, that you weren't expecting, as far as the people that you met?
Jess: Yeah. Part of my favorite things about it was talking to all the different people. And a lot of the people there were so willing to talk to you and chat with you. And I often have a hard time because I'm initially a very awkward person, so when you meet me it takes a second to want to talk to me. I'm just blunt. And a lot of people there were willing to take that extra second it took to want to talk to me, and there's not a lot of groups of people who would be willing to do that.
Me: Any final thoughts?
Jess: I often feel like a lot of times, being LDS I have to shrink myself. I have to be a little less me. I didn't feel like I had to out there. I didn't feel like I had to change myself to try and fit in.
Revival wasn’t your typical festival, for many reasons. One of the reasons that a lot of people go to festivals is because of the very wide range of experiences offered. Everyone comes home with something different. Revival offered just that. Holding a festival with the intention of healing created a beautiful and unique atmosphere where people could find the healing they needed, whatever that might be. Where does it go from here? Well, I think an old Burning Man idiom is appropriate: This year was great! Next year was better.