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Salons, Séances, and Soirées
It all started when…
Somewhere along the line, being alone started to feel a bit lonely.
Salons, séances, and soirées is designed to gather us together: sometimes in person, sometimes on Zoom. If all of the words sound vaguely French, it’s because they, like so many enjoyable things in life, were introduced to society by the French.
WHAT’S A SALON? WELL, I’M GLAD YOU ASKED.
A salon is a gathering of people in someone’s home, usually with an emphasis on conversation. Think of it as a sort of party featuring a “show and tell” for grown-ups, with a featured presenter.
Salons were super popular in the 18th century Europe, then again in the early 20th century among groups such as the Bloomsbury Group (Virginia Woolf and friends) and people like Gertrude Stein. Consider it a meeting of minds, where us smart folks get together in order to chat about important topics and issues of the day.
Here’s the best part: We get to say what is important.
A salon is a great place for communion and communication. It is the getting-together of like-minded folks to talk about things that they find important or interesting or entertaining.
As a practical matter, sometimes it will be us discussing a book (or at least something spurred by a book—I’m not giving out homework!). Sometimes it may be having a guest to present something, followed by a Q&A. With any luck, it may sometimes be a performance or a reading, followed by discussion.
Doesn’t meaningful conversation sound delightful? That’s what a salon is all about. Well, that and enjoying one another’s company, plus maybe some snacks and drinks (especially for any that are in-person events).
Us, hanging out at a salon. Dibs on the embroidered black gown. (It’s actually a painting of a salon featuring a reading of a work by French poet, author and playwright, Molière.)
What’s this about séances?
I’m using a slight modification of the French term séance, meaning “a sitting.” While it has been used to mean “a sitting specifically for the purpose of communicating with the dead”, it is also “an attempt to communicate with spirits.”
For my purposes, it is a sitting or session for the purpose of a spiritual interaction. That could mean anything involving ancestors, spirit guides, guardian angels, or even things like your intuition or higher self. This could mean having guests who are mediums, tarot readers, or people who use other forms of divination.
Are we reading tarot cards? That involves asking people’s spirit guides to get involved and help choose cards. Are we doing a guided meditation to allow us to meet and interact with our higher self or one or more spirit guides or angels? That’s still a séance under my definition. Are we communicating via mediumship? That is for sure interacting with spirits.
I am hoping to do some in-person séances, as well as hosting online ones. Because, of course, energy isn’t limited by proximity, so we don’t always need to be in person. I’m hoping to have some guest psychic mediums now and again, in addition to other activities listed above.
What’s a soirée?
A soirée is an evening party.
Specifically, it is usually a fancy evening party where folks dress up, with a focus on conversation and perhaps music. Fancy here means something more like “next level” than it does the British version of “fancy dress”, but truly, it can overlap.
Doesn’t that sound like huge fun?
It sure sounds like fun to me. I love the idea of getting together in person for an evening party where we get all dolled up, just for ourselves, because we want to, and enjoy some food and drinks and sparkling conversation.
If it sounds a lot like a salon, you aren’t wrong. But salons can be any time of day, from brunch to tea time and beyond, and usually have a focal point: a reading, an artist, some music, a topic of discussion. A soirée is different because it’s only in the evening, and involves getting dressed up, and while there might be a theme for the evening, it’s more of a party vibe than a salon is.
Maybe one time it’s wearing evening gowns, just because we can. But it could be a soirée where we dress like our favorite author, or a magical outdoor dinner party under lanterns and fairy lights. It could include fund-raising for a charity on occasion. It’s about being in community with good folks.
