Samhain Musings

As the year grows darker and we sit in the space between death and life, there is still hope and renewal. This is a space of transition, of shifting. A time to confer with our ancestors and spirits as they walk through the thinned veil, a time to divine what it is we need, what it is that we do not and what it is that is holding us back.

It is a time to reap what we have sown since the last dying season, whether it be good or bad, abundant or sparse. It is a time to consider what we want to cultivate as the great wheel spins on and ushers in a new cycle. Time to burn away that which is rotten, fouled and no longer needed to make way for new life once the darkest days of coming Winter are behind us.

I plan to pull out the cards tonight, once trick or treat and Halloween fun have finished, and share wine with the spirits. To leave honey for the fae and whisky for the goblins, in hopes they will continue to keep their mischief to themselves. I plan to make a resolution, as I do at each Witch's New Year... this year to cast of the chains I've bound myself in. To let go of holding back, of hiding, or censoring myself... even a little bit. Because to be anything other than my full, true self is doing a grave disservice to my soul and my emotional state.

I plan to let my freak flag unfurl and fly this year, to become truly brave and step in to my own.

So mote it be.

To my fellow witches, pagans and magic makers a very merry Samhain! May your harvest (both literally and figuratively) be bountiful and the ancestors bless you this evening. May you be blessed with abundance, joy and magic as the great wheel begins its cycle anew.

Merry May

As has happened the past few Beltanes, I was reminded of my luck when I glanced down. Rather than the usual 1 or 2 this year, I was gifted with a bushel of 4 & 5 leaf clovers. Timely reminders.

The First of May, the First of May! Outdoor screwing begins today!

;)

The May Queen has returned and she and the horned God will once more bless the land with fertility a'plenty. The fires of celebrants will burn away the last remnants of Winter and stagnation; lands and moods will be greened and renewed. Spring has come for certain, the lands are warming and baby birds have begun to peck through their eggs - ready to meet the World.

With the veil being thinned, troops of fairies will roam our world, singing and laughing their joy. You may join them and leave gifts for them if you wish, but be careful not to get trapped by them. As old tales have often warned, even the kindest seeming fairy may seek to trick you in to joining them.

I'll be leaving offerings later, under the old oak tree, for the creatures the Lord and Lady tend. There will be others left by the lilies for the fae that I know will dance through at their leisure and one last one by the thickety thorns for the Goblins so they'll continue to take their mischief elsewhere.

I'll head out to the very back of our property, where a mother crow has built her nest and leave gifts of meat for her and her soon to be babies. I'll find flowers, perhaps bake if it doesn't top 80* today and burn things when the Sun has departed.

May your May Day be filled with joy, celebration and warmth. May the fires of passion for whatever and whomever you love burn bright and hot and may you be blessed with an abundance of the fertility of your choosing.

Blessed Beltane!

Quietly, She Comes

Despite the turning of the wheel, I know many places are still shrouded in the death throes of The Winter Crone. Even here in the land of eternal Spring, we've still been having cold days and frosty nights. The other night there were flurries! It's been keeping me from beginning my gardens as early as I normally do, not wanting the baby herbs and vegetables to be burned or killed by ice.

But still, she is coming. The Maiden Spring and her train of merry making and beauty. You can see signs of her arrival all around; in the return of the warm weather birds, in the buds of trees, in the flowers that say "I've slept enough, I'm blooming now!". In the growing strength and warmth of the Sun. She is coming, slowly, not being rushed by a calendar date or the celebrations of the Equinox.

And quiet, as her returning, were my celebrations of the shifting seasons. I woke up early on Ostara morning and had coffee with my visiting friends before heading out in to the warm sunshine after 3 days of cold and rain to sit in comfy chairs and catch up while the dogs played in the yard. My altar, much in need of a cleaning, was stripped of its stones, crystals, bones and bric-a-brac. These treasured pieces were brought out to let the sunshine burn away old energies and be renewed with the energies of the Equinox.

The space itself was cleansed with smoke and fire and the ringing of bells. Then everything was lovingly returned and rearranged, ready for this new cycle.

In small ways, I'm still celebrating Spring's returning. The windows are stubbornly thrown open whenever the sun is shining, the cobwebs of winter are being chased from nooks and crannies and the house is getting a top to bottom scrubbing of both the physical and spiritual variety. I've got yellow candles and sweet rose incense burning amidst bees and birds on my mantel and am soaking up the sound of birdsong.

Most years I celebrate the coming of Spring with a lot of pomp and circumstance on the Equinox, as the transitional seasons are the ones with which I am nearest and dearest. But this year, I'm taking my cues from the Maiden herself and doing so slowly, quietly and with faith that soon enough the Crone will retire her cold throne and make way for rebirth, renewal, growth and warmth. Making way, inevitably, for the Mother's return. Which, as I prepare to enter her sacred circle, will be extra special this year.

All Hallows Eve

Happy Hallowe'en, my lovelies!

Once I'm off work this afternoon, I plan to take a second walk around the neighborhood under the cool grey skies and as ever, keep a watchful eye and open heart for messages or signs. And also, to simply enjoy this day and this weather while it lasts. Then I'll be sweeping and cleaning the house, renewing wards and protection charms. I plan to cook and set up the altar, nothing fancy this year... all while wearing my finest pointy hat.

Then tonight I'll entertain guests both living and non, setting out the jack-o-lanterns to ward off the nasty ghouls and ghosts and to guide the honored dead and beloved spirits to my table where a place will be set for them. I'll leave offerings where the fae congregate in our yard; wine and sweets in the garden for those who are gentle and kind and beer and bread at the edge of the thorny patch for the goblins. After all, we shouldn't slight the darkness. Don't believe me? Just look at what happened to Sleeping Beauty.

Candy will be given to those wee souls who are brave enough to ring our bell. I'll be opening a nice bottle of red wine and sipping that while the candles burn and I offer thanks for the blessings of this past year and ponder what needs to go and what I need to call to me in this next one. I'll bind what I must and send my wishes skyward on ash and smoke. Just before bed, I'll pull cards for the coming year and take their advisement to heart.

There's something in the air this year that feels different than recent Hallowe'ens past. I felt a pull to light all of my candles yesterday, to sweep clear the altar area and to keep those candles burning for 3 days and 3 nights. And so, I shall.

Samhain blessings to my fellow Witches and Pagans; may this new year be filled with blessings a plenty! To my cherished muggles, a very happy Hallowe'en, may your night be filled with magic and joy.

The First Harvest

Over the years, Lughnasadh has become one of my favorite Sabbats; I love it nearly as much as I love Samhain. I could go in to the mythology behind the Sabbat, tell you all about Lugh and his mother and why this festival was founded, but there are many other writers that do a very good job of that.

Instead, I'd like to share what this festival means to me. Sabbats, as with holidays both secular and of other faiths, hold different meanings to each person. While for the most part we start out in the same place when it comes to celebrating (learning the Mythology, associations, traditional rituals, etc.) as we become more in tune with our individual spiritual path, forge our own unique connections with deity and become comfortable with the cycles of Earth and Heavens in our own geographical location; our ways of observing and celebrating as well as our reasons why, may change. Evolving, if you will, into something more personal and therefore, more meaningful for the individual practitioner.

The harvest season here in the South starts a bit earlier than it does further North, typically with the first harvest happening closer to the Summer Solstice. When I lived in the Northern states, I celebrated Lughnasadh as an agricultural holiday, as well as a day dedicated to the god Lugh. You can imagine then, that my first harvest here was a bit of an adjustment; I'd already been pulling in the bounty for weeks - now what was I supposed to celebrate? Did I just go on with harvesting things as a way to celebrate?

Sure, but there was more than just pulling in goodies from the gardens to this Sabbat. The First Harvest Festival marks the start of the darker half of the year for me; heralding the start of the dying season. I've always been much more comfortable and content, on both physical and spiritual levels, with the part of the year that falls between August and March. This is the time of the year that I really get in to my element and get things done, this is the time of the year where my creativity typically peaks.

As a Harvest Festival, it is also a time of abundance - a time to reap what we have sown in the Spring time. Every Spring I do a cleaning and abundance ritual and so it is that I repeat that ritual once more at Lughnasadh. I clean house, clear out the energies, recharge wards and most importantly, evaluate where I am and how far I've come since Spring. If there's something holding me back or ties that no longer serve me, I use the powerful energy of this day to cut away the cords with an emotional scythe. Reaping and Harvesting isn't all just about bringing in the good stuff, after all. As I'm one to work with balance in mind, I realize that a cutting and burning like this leaves a gap that needs to be filled and so my final act, aside from the card pull I do at every Sabbat and Esbat, is to make an offering up to Lugh - in the form of art that I burn in my cauldron - and ask him to bless my creative practice and call forth what I need in my life.

Today I will celebrate the aspect of the God; Lughnasadh has always been a very masculine day for me - much like Imbolc is a very feminine one. For me, this isn't just a time to celebrate Lugh, but to also honor the Horned One and the God of the Wildwoods. There will be good ale in cold pints, fresh bread and hearty laughter. I will take offers to the edge of the property, where the trees and brambles grow thick between our yard and the next obscuring view and sheltering critters of both fur and feather.

May your Lughnasadh be merry, your blessings bountiful. May you reap that which you most desire and your creative fires be abundant. Happy Sabbat!

P.S. Edited to add photos. Feeling under the weather so celebrated and observed far earlier than usual.

Magic in the Mountains; Home

Over Solstice weekend, Joe and I ventured to New Jersey for a long weekend visit with our friends and family. Usually when we go home, it's an incredibly stressful whirlwind trip where we have a schedule that we need to stick to in order to fit everyone that wants to visit with us in.

And of course, for whatever reason they come up with, no one ever wants to come to us or get together with other people as well and it's ridiculously frustrating and the main reason that despite having two weeks off between jobs I did not go home during that time. Thinking about it raised my blood pressure a few points and gave me anxiety. That's not healthy or OK. As is probably evident in that massive run on sentence! Phew.

This time though, things were different. I made it very clear that I was not going to be guilted in to spending 5 days driving all over the tri-state area after making the monster drive North of the Mason Dixon line. If people wanted to come to me, they could, but that people we have not seen since we moved 3 years ago, as well as time with our families and a solid day or two to just chill out (like an actual vacation!) took priority. Some people were offended; there were some text messages meant to make me feel badly about my decision, a few people even called me selfish for wanting a day to lay on the beach and I responded with the road runs South as well before presenting them with their very own Jersey State Bird.

You can take the girl out of Jersey, but you can't take the Jersey out of the girl.

And despite some consternation and passive aggressive bullshit, I'm pleased to say this was hands down, the best trip we've ever made home. The lesson learned here? Boundaries! Set them. Stick to them. Don't take guilt. I'm going to get that tattooed on my forearm so I remember to do the same in my day to day life, but that's another story.

We left for the North on the Wednesday afternoon before the Solstice, driving North on a long, boring stretch of highway. Things were uneventful; Joe and Luna were curled up together snoozing in the passenger seat as I drove through Virginia, Killjoys playing on the stereo. I was lost in thought, which here really means worry, about a plethora of things: the trip itself, seeing friends I've not spoken to in years, how Luna would do with all the fuss and strangers, truckers driving too close to me, shitty friends in the South, myself. I was in deep, and I remember fingering the Mercury dime I carry with me while I travel thinking, "Hermes, I just need to know it'll all be OK. I know that's a cheesy request, one I haven't made of you since I was a girl, but I feel so wound up and fretful I can barely stand it anymore."

And then the heavens opened up and it poured so hard that I could barely see 15 feet in front of me as my tiny car slowly climbed the mountains. I was all dour and grumpy, turned the radio up some more, griped at Luna for whining and drove onward. And just as quickly as it started, the rain stopped and there was this:

The first rainbow I've seen in over a year, breaking through the dark clouds right in front of me. Some people aren't quick to see or believe in signs, but I'm not those people. For me, that rainbow, and the three others I saw after each burst of heavy rain, were the warm 'hug' that I needed from the Divine. A pat on the shoulder and a nice cup of tea that told me not to worry, because it will all be ok. There was so much Magic in the Virginia mountains on this trip for me and I never had to leave my car to experience it. I merely basked in the glow of the sunlight as it slanted in that odd way that is has right before a large storm and drove onward, singing. Head cleared.

A few hours, more rain showers and some dark roads later we landed at my mother's house to sleep. In the morning we were awoken by my niece, Khloe (who is now 2 years and a few months old - where did all that time go?!?) saying 'Hello' and playing with Luna. It never ceases to amaze me how gentle Luna is with kids, despite her extremely energetic personality.

Best Friends!

We spent the day with my sister and niece before going to visit Joe's parents and sisters at his childhood home. Driving the short 20 minutes between the houses made us both so homesick for the landscape as we passed several lakes bordering winding hilly roads that are shaded by large oaks and maple trees. There's something so magical and comforting about the thickness of the tree canopy there that's missing here in South Carolina.

That, and driving anywhere makes me want to claw my eyes out as all the roads are flat and straight and bordered with red clay and scrubby pines. But, I digress. The fact that New Jersey is so beautiful (a well kept secret from those who don't live there, honestly) makes every place else seem sort of 'blah' to me.

Lake by Joe's parents' house.

While we visited with them, his dad and I went over some of my Geneology because he loves to do that sort of thing and I've always been completely clueless about my heritage on my mother's side of the family. Dad's half Irish and half Ukrainian (explains a bit about me, doesn't it?) but whenever I've asked my mother or my grandmother about their ancestry I've always been met with 'who cares' or 'I don't know'. Well, we were able to dig as far back as the mid 1700's fairly easily before the trail went cold and there's something very, very interesting to note:

Between the mid 1700's to present, my family has lived in Northern New Jersey. From what we could find I am one of, if not the first, in my mother's direct family line to leave the state in over 300 years. I jokingly told Joe that from now on when I discuss heritage I'm going to say 1/4 Irish, 1/4 Ukrainian and 1/2 Jersey. I also, not as jokingly - honest-, told him that should we ever have kids I'm going to have to travel back to the 'Homeland' to give birth because I'm somehow sure if I do it elsewhere I'm going to bring some sort of curse (like chicken feet) on to my bloodline. It was interesting to rifle through all the old documents and get as far as we did and made this girl even more fiercely proud to be from New Jersey. (He did, in the last few weeks track back further and found that at least part of my mother's family hails from Germany with a couple of years spent in Canada sprinkled in between Europe and The U.S. for extra interest.)

For Solstice, I spent the evening with a friend while Joe went to meet his brothers for dinner. She and I went to one of my most dearly held spots in North Jersey Sunrise Mountain, to watch the sun set on the Longest Day. The energy on the mountain top was incredible, it moved my heart in a much needed way and allowed me to know that despite my lack of ritual, workings or other trappings that I'm in the right place on my path right now. I smiled at mighty Sun as the wind whipped my hair then turned to watch his sister, Moon rise up behind us swollen nearly to full. It was hazy, but still a breathtaking view as the two did their eternal dance.

We walked back down the craggy path to our car in the twilight, careful not to fall or lose our footings. A simple, yet deeply meaningful way to acknowledge the Solstice. Yet more magic in the mountains for this Witch, but this time, in the Mountains of my heart.

Beltane, Birthdays and Breathing

How in the blazes did it get to be the 9th already? Where has this month gone? I suppose it's been sucked up by all the things we've been up to lately.

My Beltane wasn't all that I had planned, since it turned rainy, cold and windy before I made it home from work. But I made the most of it all the same, with food and drink and offerings at the altar. With laughter, love and candle fire. I burned away things I wished to be rid of and sent my wishes skyward on smoke and ash, just on a smaller scale than the bonfire I had hoped for.

Joe's birthday came on Ocho de Mayo but we celebrated on the 4th, after a visit to our local comic book shop for Free Comic Book Day.

May the Fourth be with you!


Snippets from the party. The rain refused to let up all week and so our luau/fiesta was forced inside and under umbrellas.


The birthday boy and I on his actual birthday. 

I finally had a few moments to take a breath this afternoon and sit down with my animal guide in SouLodge for the month of May, Hummingbird. I'll be honest, while the Lodge and the tribe has worked with the medicines of several different animal guides and done various exercises in the North and East quadrants of the Medicine Wheel, I've stayed wrapped up with Grandmother Bear this whole time. I also worked with Buffalo a little bit, but Bear was where I felt I needed to stay for a while. To do the deep work. And I trusted her to let me go when the time was right, I trusted myself and my intuition to lead me down this path in the manner which best suits me. And this month, before I even opened the prompt, I've seen a few beautiful hummingbirds in my yard and felt the tug of energy, of vitality. Like Spring had blown her warm breath deep into my center and warmed and awoken me from the inside out. And Bear let me go, to awaken and soar with hummingbird; to be reborn and to do the energetic healing that comes after the deepest wounds have been faced and the hardest inner battles won.

This connection with the flying rainbow may very well explain my recent draw towards all things intensely vibrant and colorful lately. We'll see. I bet most of you had even forgotten I was doing SouLodge, since it's been ages since I've posted about it. But, if the only lessons I take from this year long journey are to ruthlessly trust myself and my feelings and to know that I am exactly where I need to be (especially in regards to being attuned with the seasons) then that is more than enough. Anything else is a blessed bonus.

Yuletide Musings

A whirl of activity; cleansing my home and myself, purging the shit and the clutter from my closets and my spirit. Yule morning and afternoon was a labor of love and a time to honor the feelings and energies that I needed to release. To prepare to burn away that darkness that has been looming heavy and overbearing, to let the light back in.

Dancing and singing while I worked to prepare a feast for the husband, the best friend and I to share after sunset. The house filled with the scent of chocolate cake, rosemary, vinegars and sweet incense.

The main altar was tidied and flipped in honor of the seasonal shift, to farewell the Holly King and welcome the King of Oak. The corn goddess was offered up to the land and fresh holly brought in from the bushes outside to adorn the space. Candles for the dueling brothers, the fledgling sun and hope set out to be lit as darkness descended.

When the sun said goodbye and the longest night began, candles were lit throughout the house, the fire in the hearth lit and the boys and I sat down to a table set with colorful linens and a Christmas cracker on each plate. Popping the crackers open, we laughed as we donned our lofty paper crowns and dug into the food; marinated steaks, slow roasted herb potatoes, honeyed carrots and champagne. We told jokes and made merry until our bellies were full and our plates empty.

Having eaten our fill, we moved to the warm comfort of the living room for more champagne, Christmas movies and our annual gift exchange. More laughter and stories as we greedily ripped through paper to get to the wonders inside; paintings, mosaics, sculpture, sketchpads and games, many lovingly handmade.

We made wishes on the Yule log before adding it to the fire, the sparks whisking our desires up to the heavens. My ritual was short, personal and filled with fire. The King is dead, long live the king! After a much needed night of mirth, warmth and joy I retired to bed before all of the candles had burned out.

This morning I rose unaided to greet the renewed sun, unusual for me as I am in no way a morning person. As I stood in the frosty grass, wind whipped my hair, gazing adoringly at the baby sun growing brighter behind the trees, I felt lighter and more free than I have in so long I've lost count. The tingling of rebirth and change danced in my heart and I couldn't help but smile.

Shifting Solstice

It's yet another Doomsday and this one's a doozy; the most talked about one I've encountered in my life short of the Day of Reckoning (which no one has a date for). We discussed it in history classes, in my art classes, in my Spanish classes - from Middle School through now we've discussed it. And I'll be honest, when I was younger it freaked me out! All the speculation and all the mystery surrounding the Maya didn't do anything to quell my concerns either.

But as it's gotten closer and closer and I've read up, spoken to my love who lived in Honduras for a few years and spoke to Mayan descendants about it (have I ever mentioned Joe's obsession with Mayan culture? No? Well, he loves it.) and listened to my gut, I've felt fine about the whole thing. That said there is definitely a feeling to this day, to this Yule, that is different than the ones I've recognized in the past.

The past few months have felt so heavy, the past few weeks have felt sort of dark; ominous almost. Not in a doom and gloom way, but in an energetically claustrophobic way. As if I were in a damp dark cave, with no light and only apathy for company. The past few days however, I've felt it shift and I know many others have experienced this feeling too.

It hasn't shifted to feel all jolly and festive like the holiday season typically does, but it's gotten lighter - both the weight and the darkness. It's as if there's a crack in the egg shell of my cave and the light has found a way in. There's a tingling of hopefulness, of fearlessness and of wonder that I've not felt before. I feel a deep urge to make changes, to really evolve and grow; to no longer be content to just be - but to really take the plunge to be more positive, more spiritual, more authentically me. To reach for the stars while keeping my feet firmly on the ground.

Others have reported these feeling too, the shucking off of a cocoon we didn't even realize we were nestled inside of. I've heard it amongst my pagan cohorts and witches as well as within my painting tribe. There is an oddity to it though and perhaps it's just my experience due to the nature of these circles; I've only heard it from women.

Do I believe the world is going to end tonight? No. But as I sit here today, I feel an anticipation of a sort, like something big is going to happen and when I awake tomorrow I won't be the same. Who knows how valid this gut feeling is, especially with all the talk of a 'new age' that could be affecting it. I do wonder however, with so many souls vocalizing similar thoughts and feelings if this isn't truly the end of *something*. There is definitely a shifting occurring, a transitioning. I don't claim to know what it is, or how many it is truly affecting, but I think it is for the better. I truly hope it is.

For now, I'm going to bask in the warmth of the returning light. I'm going to revel in the return of the Oak King and the Sun Serpent. May their light warm us all on this longest of nights.

Honoring Something Different This Samhain

It was with a heavy heart that I sat before my altar last night, with images of my beloved New Jersey torn asunder sitting firmly in my mind. While my loved ones are all safe and accounted for (thank the gods), places where so many memories were made were washed out to sea, never to be the same. The places where I spent summers in shore towns, my only family vacation to my beloved beautiful asbury park, the weekends spent in shitty motels right out of high school, birthday weekends, my first fledgling attempts at photography, that damned belly button piercing, trips to Atlanic City with my mom when I was younger, the place I threw a bottle into the ocean with a note to the man I love, with a note of sentiment for the sea to carry to him while he was in another country sorting himself out. Heartbroken, I remembered the places that had cleansed my soul, healed my heart and brought calm and joy to my life numerous times. I felt torn, useless for not being there and not being able to do anything from so far away but donate blood and money.

I very nearly walked away from my altar, candles unlit and nothing said. But I didn't, I couldn't. I turned and lit my candles despite the heaviness in my heart, welcomed the elements and praised Hecate and Hermes. As I did, I felt more energized than I had in days - prickles of pins and needles traveled from the top of my head to the soles of my feet. I lit another candle for my homeland, for the memories that are now gone, for the people who lost so much and I let some of it go; left some of it at the end of the Wheel's last cycle and took a step, a little lighter in to the new one. What I have to offer, right now, all that I can do to help - is enough.

Being one who celebrates the people who have passed on in my life on Dia de Los Muertos, I chose to honor the history, dreams, memories and lives lost to that hateful storm. I thanked the far off crippled shoreline for all it had done for me with the last remnants of the water I gathered there under the full moon on my third anniversary. My usual Samhain workings came after. Though tired, I lit a black candle and burned away the things I wish to leave behind in the old year and a white candle to attract the things I wish to call to me in the new one. Finally, I sat with my faerie oracle deck for a while, pulling three cards. I didn't pull a full wheel of the year reading as I normally do; I was too drained to focus well.

Seems I need to be wary of what I hear this coming year; of gossip and messages mangled and mixed. Or is this wee Fae simply bearing my messenger god's greetings to me? Either way, the beginning of this new turn will be heralding in a shift in several of my perspectives, a lot of introspection and deep work and hopefully - an arrival to a place of true renewal and healing.

Blessed Samhain, lovelies.

Welcome, Autumn!

Damn, did I miss this time of the year something fierce! I spent so much time being outside this weekend, reveling in the season, that despite setting up my altar I didn't touch it. I didn't perform my usual ritual, instead I spent time out in the sun, by firelight and with my fingers in the dirt.

And that was all the ritual I needed to connect with this part of the year. We spent Saturday evening at a friend's housewarming party where there was plenty of music, food and beer around a cozy campfire. The first of the season for us! The mosquitoes were even on their best behavior, I was only bitten twice - unusual for me.

Yesterday evening the perennial jungle of roses and rosemary in my gardens started being pruned back, the dead annuals have been pulled up and this year's baby mums have been planted. While I did that, hubby worked on tackling our very out of control hedgerows and butterfly bushes. We ate dinner and then took the recycling out. We don't have local pick-up, so we take it to a 24 hour bin drop-off site.

As you can see, even with all that pruning these bush roses are still massive

As we were driving home, where my camera/phone happened to be, I saw some bright shiny eyes and a slender form crossing the road ahead. I slowed down, thinking it was a deer and was beyond myself with excitement as the headlights illuminated a coyote! As he slunk back to the side of the road he was joined by another one. Now, I know for some of you this is no big deal... but I've never seen a coyote before. Ever! I just sat on the shoulder watching them for a bit as they wended through people's yards and out of my sight. I was completely enamored.

Making me rethink my plans for future backyard chickens - not in having them, but in housing them. We'll see what happens in the Spring.

I hope you all had a lovely Equinox and that so far, Fair Autumn is treating you very well!

A Merry Lughnasadh

We've spent the Spring and Summer celebrating life and birth, now though, the wheel spins into the darker times and the harvest season is upon us. The fields, gardens and orchards have grown from the things we had sown in the spring - the bounty has come in and it is the reaping time. Now, as the nights grow cooler and the days grow ever shorter, we begin the season of dying and eventually, rebirth.

At this harvest, I honor the God as I honored the Goddess at Imbolc. Not just Lugh, though he is a patron of mine, but the lord of the forests and wild things as well. As we move into the darkness, it is his strength that I seek solace in. It is his wild, unruly nature that kindles the spark of restlessness and excitement that ignites come Autumn each year.

And it's already starting; a buzzing in my brain and a restlessness in my heart and body. The urge to just run, to meander the forests, to splash in the rocky rivers and climb mountains. A craving for ale and meat that leaves me during the hot summer months. Then too, comes the longing for crisp starlit nights and crunchy leaves underfoot, for pumpkins and bonfires surrounded by friends.

But for now, Autumn is only just beginning to creep in with the harvest. And while my own harvest is quite meager this year, due to the massive heat and a bad bought of worms infesting the cucumbers and squashes, I am appreciative all the same. I give thanks to the Earth and the sun, the wind and the rains for the harvest that I have managed to gather. I'm reflecting on the things I planted and started when the first vestiges of Spring appeared and taking stock of the things that have flourished or that simply continued to bloom this summer. In both the literal and figurative gardens of my life.

I wish you all a very merry Lughnasadh. May your harvest be plentiful and your home and table filled with abundance, joy, friendship and love.

Midsummer

The longest day, the beginning of summer. A time to harvest herbs, soak up some sun and rejoice in the warmth and the light of this side of the wheel. The Lord and lady peak, all of nature is stirring, things are growing and (hopefully) abundant.

The Oak king is slain, yielding dominion to his brother Holly. The king is dead, long live the king!

After the sun sets, the fae come out to play - this is a sabbat of fairy magic and mischief. Leave your offerings and gifts to the little people in their favorite spot and spend some time dancing with the fireflies. Revel in this dog day of summer, for it only gets darker from here.

Offerings to the fae, nestled in among mums and roses.


Painting outside in the afternoon, soaking up the sun.

May you all have a merry, fairy kissed, Midsummer. May your summer yield fiery passions and abundance aplenty.

Spring Blessings

My wee tomato seeds are lying in eggshells and like an expectant momma I cluck and fuss over them while they sit in the windowsill.

On this beautiful Spring morning, I find that I don't have time for much more than a shower and some coffee and a book in the early sunlight before I have to head off to work. Which makes me a wee bit sad, but I know that once I'm home I'll have plenty of daylight left with which to get outside and do my annual Equinox seed planting.

The heads from two of last years Equinox flowers have waited through the Winter for this day and I will be planting their seeds this evening. With each seed will go a wish for something that I wish to grow within myself and my life this season, along with a blessing for good growth and many, many seeds. There's something so magical about keeping the annual planting alive through saving seeds.

While I typically don't create an indoor altar for the Spring, preferring to just get outside and get my hands dirty, this year I felt moved to do so. The seeds that I put on the altar at Imbolc rest there, waiting patiently for us to finish preparing the vegetable beds so we can sow them. The tools for planting and pruning wait to be cleansed and blessed for the season.

Earth and Sun who lend their strength and blessing to the growing things are represented in the bird candle holders and one of the Spring tulips who seemingly bloomed over night is offered up in thanks for the beauty of this season. Milk and honey will find their way to the altar to join the herbs this evening.

May all the seeds you plant this Equinox flourish and grow beyond your expectations and may you be truly touched by the renewing energy of this season. Happy, Happy Spring!

Midwinter Blessings

The first signs of Spring's approach break through the cold of Winter. The sun shines a bit warmer and a bit longer each day, the snow drops and first daffodils raise their sleepy heads above the cold earth. Midwinter has come, reminding us that as in all cycles, the darkness and cold will soon end and be replaced by warmth and light.

As Brighid wakes and the maiden goddess begins her dominion over the year, so too does Nature. There are stirrings in the forest, of matings and returnings, of birthings and growing. It is a time to reflect on what Winter has taught us, what we found within ourselves and in the dark. This is also a time of beginnings, of promises, of hope. A time to ready the seeds for sewing, in our gardens and in ourselves.

It's a fire festival, so let's burn the Yule greenery and invite the light into our homes and our hearts. Light your candles, clean out the hearth and start the fire anew. Here at Midwinter, let's cast off and burn away the old and that which holds us back.

May Brighid bless you muchly and may the fire and promise of this day help you to prepare the seeds you plan to sew; both in nature and in yourself.



P.S. Each day I've been making a effort to pull an oracle card for myself. Some days I don't do it first thing in the morning and today was one of those days. It was also one of those days when self doubt and dwindling faith in me crept in. As I was lighting the candles in the house, I decided to pull my oracle card and this is the Fae that reached out to me today:

She gently reminded me to be kind to myself and to keep the faith. That while I should keep my heart open (how else will you live, love and experience things?) to shield myself against the words, moods and hurts of others. Sitting on my altar, she reminds me to believe in myself and know that I am worthy.

Oftentimes, the universe knows exactly what we need to hear and when to let us know it.

Autumn Blessings

The Leaving 8x10 Watercolor

As the wheel turns and the days grow shorter, give thanks for the abundances of the bright days. The harvest, the sun's warm embrace, the fireflies and traditions of Spring and Summer. This is the time of the God's departure into the darkness, the time of the wise Crone. May we find the courage and convictions to look into our own darkness, to sit with her and learn from her wisdoms.

May the harvest bounty be plenty, your blessings be many. May you and yours have nothing but things to be thankful for, here, someplace between the dark and the light. Mabon blessings, lovelies.

Lughnasadh Blessings

The Harvest God - Oil Pastel

Marking the beginning of the end of Summer, Lughnasadh is one of my favorite sabbats. The earth is near bursting with ripe grains and vegetables, the summer fruit season begins to ebb making way for the apples of Autumn. While the days will remain hot and humid for a while longer, the sun will set sooner giving more time to the darkness. Autumn is creeping in and the old woman of Winter, the Cailleach, begins to stir. Lughnasadh is the sabbat on which I take stock of how the things I began in Spring are coming along, to begin to see the benefits of the seeds I've sewn whether they be physical or metaphorical.

This time of the year, as the harvest comes on and the year wanes I focus on the Horned God, that primal masculine force of nature, as he prepares for his descent into the Underworld. Today, my attentions are on he and my bright patron, Lugh. The Goddess is not forgotten and is given offerings and recognition alongside the Gods, but just as her altar shines brightest at Imbolc, Lughnasadh is a day that I focus on them.

A fresh harvest of cucumbers, the first three tomatoes to ripen this year as well as several sunflowers, fragrant sprigs of rosemary and sage and corn muffins straight from the oven are offered up at the thicket on the edges of my yard. Nourishment to the spirits and critters of nature, brought forth by the fertility of the Lord and Lady with help from my two hands.

A bright and cheerful day, filled with a buzz of activity from the drawing of the Harvest God above, several loads of laundry, baking and the fashioning of a new necklace will be followed by an evening of relaxation, thankfulness, fresh chili and a few cold pints.

Merry Lughnasadh to you, my lovelies. May the harvest's blessings be plenty, whatever the seeds you've sewn.

Welcoming May

Beltane came and brought with it the electricity and warmth of my soul that I've come to expect. I left my tithe to the forest, along with some pretty stones for the fae and beer for the goblins who live here. The entire day was low key, calm and perfect as it was exactly what my spirit needed.

From the dewy dawn, pink from the sun's kisses and heralded in by the buzzing of bumbles and calls of many birds,

through the afternoon which lingered heavy and hot as we worked in the garden and lawn, to the twinkling stars dancing in the navy blue sky overhead as we lit our first fire in our home;

Does anyone else see the woman in the fire?

Peaceful, perfect and renewing.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend, celebrated the first of May, loved much and laughed even more. Beltane Blessings (a wee bit late) to you.