Blessings, my Dear Ones! May Samhain have found you and yours beginning the journey inward once again and may that journey have already wrapped itself 'round you in comforting warmth.
These are the weeks and months we internalize--both literally and figuratively. In our daily lives, we hunker down in our homes to "protect" from the chills of the ever-encroaching Winter. Blankets and sweaters are brought out of storage. Savory spices replace sun-kissed herbs in our recipes (and in the scents with which we choose to surround ourselves). Kitchen witchery is at the foreground of our minds.
Within ourselves, a similar "protection" is ongoing. The texts and traditions with which we are so familiar and around which are days are organized call us to return to study. Our "sunshine" selves--so complacent in our out-of-doors activities throughout the warmer months--shift focus once again to reconnections and renewal. Growth happens in the Darkness for the Dark Half nurtures the curiosity within. We reevaluate what is good and what is past its prime...and allow our minds to travel paths of curiosity. This is the "safe" time, for we've been graced by those who've gone before, yet are not gone.
The Old Ones have visited, have graced us once more with their felt presence among us. 'Tis the Season of reflection upon what wisdom they bestowed on the hallowed Dark Night. What is being revealed to you since that Night of the Veil's Thinning? What studies are you beginning or delving into further? What intrigues call your focus away from the mundane? What connections are you being opened to? Revelation is afoot!
Be vigilant and curious and brave, my little ones. Embrace the chill...celebrate the Darkness...and be your own illumination!
In the Softness of the Moonlight...
06 November 2014
14 July 2014
Disquiet
It's past midnight.
The mortal inhabitants of the Lair are at rest 'cept its Mistress--me. The energies of the past day are too much with me, clinging desperately to my spirit and denying it peace. Try as I might, I simply am incapable of silencing the negativity...the pall of foreboding which has settled over my frame...the tension which bade me rise and write it into silence.
A trust was broken today (*no...not with my beloved, so quit that). Nearly everything was recovered/reclaimed and that which was not was of little value...but that's not the issue. The gnawing pain is that it happened at all and that the "confessional" was more a bandage than a beginning of a curative or display of true remorse for the actions...and an accidental admission that this hadn't been a first violation of my private space.
Life went on. I should do as my darling and let it go...move forward...start afresh. He saw my pain. He knows I'm hurting. He dealt with the breach in my stead as he knew I had been rendered virtually incapable of thought by the blow. He got the "confession" to occur from the parties.
It should be enough.
I want it to be enough.
I'm not certain it is enough.
So...here I sit in the restorative silence of the Lair--fur-babies sleeping their puppy-sleeps, crickets and Toads singing in the heavy Summer darkness outside, and my beloved rumbling his calming snore from our bedroom. Willing my brain to quiet...willing my nerves to soothe...willing sleep to come.
This full Moon was one which heightened emotions. At least I know I'm attuned.
In the softness of the Moonlight...
01 May 2014
Dancing at Beltane 2014
All around us are signs of mirth and merriment...of the riotous joy in Nature. A pasture sparkling with diamonds of dew on new grasses...the jolly heads of purple thistles merrily bobbing in the late Spring breezes...the mingled scent of fresh-cut lawns and the vague essence of a herd of Longhorns wafting across the miles... All these are harbingers of this more blessed and happy time!
How do we celebrate Beltane? Bonfires and rituals...May Poles and dancing...visiting sacred sites and anointing ourselves in the May dews? Whatever your practice, do remember that this is a celebratory occurrence. We are to embrace the changes and expansiveness of the season! Go out! Run! Dance! BE with Nature!!
"The Lusty Month of May" (from Camelot)
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when ev'ryone goes
Blissfully astray.
Tra la! It's here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear!
It's May! It's May!
That gorgeous holiday
When ev'ry maiden prays that her lad
Will be a cad!
It's mad! It's gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that ev'ryone takes,
Ev'ryone breaks.
Ev'ryone makes divine mistakes
The lusty month of May!
Whence this fragrance wafting through the air?
What sweet feelings does its scent transmute?
Whence this perfume floating ev'rywhere?
Don't you know it's that dear forbidden fruit!
Tra la la la la! That dear forbidden fruit!
Tra la la la la!
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That darling month when ev'ryone throws
Self-control away.
It's time to do
A wretched thing or two,
And try to make each precious day
One you'll always rue!
It's May! It's May!
The month of "yes you may,"
The time for ev'ry frivolous whim,
Proper or "im."
It's wild! It's gay!
A blot in ev'ry way.
The birds and bees with all of their vast
Amorous past
Gaze at the human race aghast,
The lusty month of May.
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when ev'ryone goes
Blissfully astray.
Tra la! It's here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear.
It's May! It's May!
The month of great dismay.
When all the world is brimming with fun,
Wholesome or "un."
It's mad! It's gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that ev'ryone takes,
Ev'ryone breaks.
Ev'ryone makes divine mistakes
The lusty month of May!
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when ev'ryone goes
Blissfully astray.
Tra la! It's here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear!
It's May! It's May!
That gorgeous holiday
When ev'ry maiden prays that her lad
Will be a cad!
It's mad! It's gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that ev'ryone takes,
Ev'ryone breaks.
Ev'ryone makes divine mistakes
The lusty month of May!
Whence this fragrance wafting through the air?
What sweet feelings does its scent transmute?
Whence this perfume floating ev'rywhere?
Don't you know it's that dear forbidden fruit!
Tra la la la la! That dear forbidden fruit!
Tra la la la la!
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That darling month when ev'ryone throws
Self-control away.
It's time to do
A wretched thing or two,
And try to make each precious day
One you'll always rue!
It's May! It's May!
The month of "yes you may,"
The time for ev'ry frivolous whim,
Proper or "im."
It's wild! It's gay!
A blot in ev'ry way.
The birds and bees with all of their vast
Amorous past
Gaze at the human race aghast,
The lusty month of May.
Tra la! It's May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when ev'ryone goes
Blissfully astray.
Tra la! It's here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear.
It's May! It's May!
The month of great dismay.
When all the world is brimming with fun,
Wholesome or "un."
It's mad! It's gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that ev'ryone takes,
Ev'ryone breaks.
Ev'ryone makes divine mistakes
The lusty month of May!
In the softness of the Moonlight...
02 April 2014
The Wheel Turns Once More
In the ebb and flow of our lives here, change is part of the natural progression. We lose, we regain; we destroy, we build up; we pass, we are reborn. Spring reminds us of the circular nature of our existence. When something or someone crosses over, it's not an ending...it's a beginning...a newly open door.
With that in mind, it is with heavy heart that I posted the following to my Facebook on Monday--
Our beloved Mollie crossed over the Rainbow Bridge this morning. No longer is she battling or in pain due to the very assertive cancer that's been attacking her. She's now forever in her happy sunbeam beneath the roses...forever chasing her toads...forever in our hearts with those soulful eyes, those velvet ears, and that knowing look.
We love you...we miss you...but you are finally at peace.
That was Monday morning. I was devastated and still am to a degree, though I know she's not suffering any longer and that our other two fur-kids (one of whom is her littermate) are able to get rest and recharge after watching over her this past month.
Monday evening, I heard them...the "rusty gate" call from the Pond. Now, Mollie and I would go out every evening in Spring and Summer and "go toadin'" once we heard the first songs--finding our Toads and "herding" them to the Pond. I heard them that night for the first time this season. I heard them and the other two pups heard them...and I took the remaining two outside.
The Toads had returned to the Pond...about seven of them...and they were singing at the top of their lungs. They were singing our sweet Mollie home.
In the softness of the ever-increasing Moonlight...
With that in mind, it is with heavy heart that I posted the following to my Facebook on Monday--
Our beloved Mollie crossed over the Rainbow Bridge this morning. No longer is she battling or in pain due to the very assertive cancer that's been attacking her. She's now forever in her happy sunbeam beneath the roses...forever chasing her toads...forever in our hearts with those soulful eyes, those velvet ears, and that knowing look.
We love you...we miss you...but you are finally at peace.
That was Monday morning. I was devastated and still am to a degree, though I know she's not suffering any longer and that our other two fur-kids (one of whom is her littermate) are able to get rest and recharge after watching over her this past month.
Monday evening, I heard them...the "rusty gate" call from the Pond. Now, Mollie and I would go out every evening in Spring and Summer and "go toadin'" once we heard the first songs--finding our Toads and "herding" them to the Pond. I heard them that night for the first time this season. I heard them and the other two pups heard them...and I took the remaining two outside.
The Toads had returned to the Pond...about seven of them...and they were singing at the top of their lungs. They were singing our sweet Mollie home.
In the softness of the ever-increasing Moonlight...
06 March 2014
Greetings my Dear Ones!
Here, in north Texas, we're in a transitional period. 'Tis not quite Spring and not exactly Winter. Nights are chill, but the sunny embrace of the ever-lengthening days bring the promise of renewal and growth. Songbirds who've been wintering in Southern climes have begun returning to the Gardens and meadows...the bunnies and squirrels are actively seeking mates and frolicking recklessly in yards and along woodlands...and the Toads have returned to our Pond.
In the spirit of this transition, the Garden is being planned and worked over in the forthcoming weeks. We've a lovely new cultivator to aid our efforts this year. Visions of heirloom tomatoes, curled squash and cucumber vines, cheery pea shoots, and stately melons gracing the tidy rows of the Garden are dancing in my head already. The Pond's surrounds are being given over to pretty little herbs (the spray from the fountain will help them stay watered and happy).
In the air...in the warm rays of the sun...in the moist scent of turned soil...can't you hear and feel and smell the potential?! She's beckoning us all. Go out and indulge in the magick and wonderment of the world coming back to vitality!
In the softness of the Moonlight...
Here, in north Texas, we're in a transitional period. 'Tis not quite Spring and not exactly Winter. Nights are chill, but the sunny embrace of the ever-lengthening days bring the promise of renewal and growth. Songbirds who've been wintering in Southern climes have begun returning to the Gardens and meadows...the bunnies and squirrels are actively seeking mates and frolicking recklessly in yards and along woodlands...and the Toads have returned to our Pond.
In the spirit of this transition, the Garden is being planned and worked over in the forthcoming weeks. We've a lovely new cultivator to aid our efforts this year. Visions of heirloom tomatoes, curled squash and cucumber vines, cheery pea shoots, and stately melons gracing the tidy rows of the Garden are dancing in my head already. The Pond's surrounds are being given over to pretty little herbs (the spray from the fountain will help them stay watered and happy).
In the air...in the warm rays of the sun...in the moist scent of turned soil...can't you hear and feel and smell the potential?! She's beckoning us all. Go out and indulge in the magick and wonderment of the world coming back to vitality!
In the softness of the Moonlight...
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