Missing Glastonbury
As people across the country are posting about missing Glastonbury and creating miniature Glastonbury’s in their gardens, you may find yourself wondering what all the fuss is really about.
Glastonbury is one of my favourite places in the whole world, it provides so many happy memories and stories that last a lifetime. I hold the place dearly in my heart, for its magic, community and the feeling of contentment that is palpable as soon as you get through the gates.
Positive emotions
It is festival that covers all human Positive emotions.
Positive emotions trigger an upward spiral of positive wellbeing (Fredrickson, 2002) The main positive emotions for psychological wellbeing are :
Joy, Pride, Gratitude, Awe, Amusement, Interest, Hope, Love, Serenity, Inspiration.
Glastonbury covers each of these in abundance and here is a small explanation of how:
Joy
From the anticipation of the band’s announcement to the last wistful look as you pull away in your Campervan, dirty, muddy and smelly the joy of Glastonbury stays with you for months afterwards and lives in your memory forever. On the whole people are smiling at Glastonbury, they are happy and content and for a whole week you get a glimpse of a different and magical world where people let themselves be childlike and immerse themselves in joy.
Gratitude-
You have the Golden Ticket and clutch it with pride and a deep gratitude. The pleasure of spending 5 days with your friends or family doing nothing but FUN. No deadlines, no work, just music, fun and dancing. The gratitude of seeing some of the best bands in the world and the opportunity to discover new music . Blasts from the past to the music of the future, From Banarama, to Kylie to Stormzy and The Killers.
Awe.
The sheer size of the festival fills you with awe. The creativity of the new installations and your first sight of the iconic Pyramid stage. That feeling of knowing you are at a moment in history of music, and life that will not be repeated in this way again. Last year focused on the climate, with the legend David Attenborough, I know that this year, Black Lives Matters would have been the topic of deep, compassionate conversations.
Last year is last year and next year will be for someone else, you are here for this moment, this Glasto whether it becomes known as the ‘muddy year’, the ‘sunny year’ , the Dolly year, who knows?
Interest.
There is something for everyone at Glasto, the talks in the Left field where politics and can be discussed with integrity and respect. The climate parade run by Extinction Rebellion, a fun run from the top of the hill to the bottom . Workshops and discussions with people from all over the world who you will never come across again. I always come away feeling more creative, wiser and more open minded.
Hope.
No plastic bottles last year and such a great success, The hope of creativity and imagination of the next generation . The climate parade and the silence and awe as David Attenborough stepped onto the stage to address the festival. The underlying hope of maybe, just maybe getting next year’s ticket.
Love.
People are kind at Glastonbury, everyone is in it together. In the heat, people pass water along lines and look out for children and help festival people who may have had a little too much beer, or sun. Strangers hold spaces in crowds for each other and everyone speaks to everyone as they wait for the next band. There are weddings, proposals and love can be felt everywhere despite the size of the festival, it feels safe and kindness runs through veins of this place.
Serenity,
It is hard to find peace and serenity at most music festivals, but Glastonbury has peace in abundance if you want to find it. From meditation in the Greenfields, the calm, quiet audience listening to a Shakespeare play nestled in The woods. The healing tents with quiet meditation or Yoga. Take a walk up to the hill underneath the Glastonbury Sign and look out over the whole site or people-watch in the Stone Circle.
Inspiration.-
The bands, the artists , the poets, the circus, the creativity of the festival.
Who would have thought of Glastonbury on Sea?
The Eavis family who in their 50th year would have provided more surprises and memories for the lucky ticket holders of this year. They have as always been graceful in their disappointment of cancelling this year and are busy planning an amazing 2021, when it will be never more needed.
What are your favourite Glastonbury moments?
So, this year, I will watch every minute of old Glastonbury’s on the TV, knowing it only shows a tiny part of the Glastonbury experience, feeling enormously grateful that I have had a ticket 7 times. Each time it has been a unique and wildly different experience, with different people which in itself brings a different Glastonbury.
Each and every time has built memories I will treasure forever. So here starts the praying that I get a ticket for next years and I hope if you are reading this that you do too.
I would love to hear your Glastonbury experiences.
Please comment below with your happiest Glasto memories.
