Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Ordinary Sacred


My last Full Moon ritual, where I did more than toss a tired glance out of my window in to the cloudy sky, was in June when I strung my mother cord necklace. July's was the night before I went in to labor and my body felt beat up and exhausted. August's and September's felt similarly, though I had a baby to show for my exhaustion which made it feel less lazy. I didn't light candles, I didn't go outside. I went to bed, because that's what my body and mind demanded of me.

Lughnasadh went by with just a hat tip and Mabon will most likely be celebrated with the eating of a sacred (ok, not really) apple fritter.

I had scaled back a while ago, keeping my altars simple and my rituals a quiet (usually, I don't speak) and straightforward affair. Nowadays I barely have time to do more than pause for a moment in front of it, breathing in the scents of wood, wax and old incense. Maybe I pull an oracle card, maybe not.

Depends on the day.

Mind you, I'm not complaining. Rather, I'm recognizing what has been going on in my spiritual life since this little star came and landed in to my arms.

It's taken some adjustment, as so many things have in the whirlwind of new mommyhood, but I'm finding the sacred and keeping my spiritual side fed in different, smaller, ways.

The sacred is all around us, we don't need fancy trappings or rituals to find it. We need only be still, quiet and observant - even if it's only for a minute. The sacred whispers to me as a breeze through the leaves. It warms me with the first glimmers of morning sunlight kissing my cheek. It's found in the quiet moments of love while Acorn and I lay quietly nursing. There's magic in the songs of the cicadas and in the breathing of my sleeping boys as I lay awake at night, petting Luna.

I've been inviting it in with small gestures: burning candles, windows thrown open on the first cool day in months, dusting my altar spaces, creating a wee new one in the studio, giving my hands up to spirit and paint when time allows. I invite it in by sitting silently, taking deep breaths and quieting my mind.

It may not look like witchery or magic. It may not seem sacred, but finding beauty, magic and gratitude in the simple and ordinary truly is.

6 comments:

  1. There is absolutely magic in the ordinary, many blessings on your new star :)
    Sarah

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  2. Oh my word, I can totally relate to this! I have a toddler and a teenager, and right now my spiritual practice is all about finding the magic in everyday life. Which is actually kind of amazing!

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  3. I think part of the journey is learning to recognize the divine in the everyday. I don't always have a chance to have a full ritual, but I celebrate life in the little things, and in the beauty of the everyday. Blessings.

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  4. What you're doing is exactly right because it's what you need right now. I'm a full time mom of two teens, full time student and work outside of the home full time and tend to wonder where my time fits in to all this, spiritual and personal. One thing I learned that I wish I had known when they were little is that you have to take care of you too. Healthy mom makes a healthy home! Blessings to you and the little star!

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  5. I was the same way after i gave birth for the first 6 or 7 months. I only took time to give thanks and did a few protection rituals for her. Now everything is back to normal but feels fuller somehow.

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  6. You gave birth - honestly! How much magick do you need in a year? Congrats on seeing the wonder of every day life, only those who believe can see it.

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