This Shifting and Turning

Tonight I sat outside and watched the sky blush pink. It was not the deep rose-purple of a summer sunset.  Instead the shade was a coral colour, stretching into tints that mimicked the salmon that are returning to our river to spawn.  It was warm, both in the hue of the sky and here on earth. The sultry months have extended their reach and show little sign of moving on just yet.

Monday or Tuesday, depending on your time zone, marks the autumnal equinox although the days and nights will not be equal here in the Valley until September 25th, when the sun will rise at 6:48am, and set at 6:49pm. By then, if we're lucky, we may see the tiniest sliver of new moon in the west, just before dark.  It all speaks of plentitude, harmony, and the continued journey (seeming ever-so-rapid these days) of our lives as we rocket around the sun.

After taking a good look at what our work has brought in as harvest, it only seems right to celebrate and acknowledge our own labour, as well as the unseen hands (hooves, paws, claws) that tend to us. It is a lovely time for a feast, a dance around the flames, or a literal (or figurative) roll in the hay as the final crops are laid bare in the fields.

I've started burning things again - as I do.  This year some of the herbs were very happy so there has been a surplus of dried stalks to save for future fires.  Tonight I was fumigated by sprigs of lavender and sagebrush twigs, and I was so thankful for the simple pleasure of having a fire bowl in my backyard to linger over.

This year has been transitory (aren't they all, really) and as well as flying by, it has seemed to take on the task of preparing me for what's to come in the next few years.  I'm sensing a big change, but I haven't quite grasped the edges of it yet.  Time will tell.  In the meantime, I'm working with a naturopath, taking a few online courses, tending the bumper crop of tomatoes, carrots, beets, and cucumbers, and gearing up for the October madness that waves hello from just over that hill...

Will you celebrate the delicious descent into autumn?  Will you feast, fire, and dance, or quietly give a nod to the movement of the hour hand of the year?

I hope it blesses you, this shifting and turning, I truly do.

Green Greetings

Signs of life!

I spent Saturday outside reveling in the yard and gardens.  My back took a beating last week with the early plantings and there has been more yard work since.  Much yoga is needed!

The valerian is showing off already.  It is quite happy it its pot, but by next year I may have to find a spot in the ground for it.    Several of my potted herbs have outgrown their containers.  The evening primrose is hanging over the edges of its pot, so it will be the first to get a new home - as soon as the weather evens out a little. I managed to gather quite a few seeds from it, but because I didn't grab them in the late autumn, I'm not sure about their quality.  I'm trying to sprout some now.  If it works, I'll have seeds to share.

 

In the veggie gardens, the chives are happily popping up.  I'm itching to make a potato salad with these lovelies!

The chickweed is thriving and is flowering too!  It's hard to see, but if you click the pic below, you'll see the little white flowers.  They look many-petaled, but in fact the petals are merely split.  How many times have I posted about chickweed?  It almost competes with dandelion for my weedy heart.

The lady is waking up too.  I've got to take the shears to the lady's mantle, but she'll have to wait her turn.  This year, instead of rushing through all the chores, I'm trying to take time with each plant. It helps me to appreciate them more and sometimes I get a clue on how I might make use of them in new ways. The valerian in the top photo was the first to get a nice clean up, and it really spoke to me about taking time for myself and making time to relax.  This year I'm going to infuse some of the wonderful-strange scented flowers in oil.

My wishes for spring go out to all of you - especially those still under snow.  We've had a few flurries here, but the snow no longer stays on the ground.  Although the time change kicked my butt last week, I have to say that I'm rather happy with the longer days.  No more driving to and from work in the dark, which is wonderful.

Even more good news - the spring equinox hits on Wednesday, and Mercury is out of retrograde.  Good things are afoot!

Vernal Equinox

Just popping in to wish you a happy Equinox and a blessed Ostara!  Here's a bit of fun and lore for you:

Equinox

The equinox (meaning, “equal night”) is a point in time that occurs in the spring and fall in which the center of the Sun is in the same plane as the Earth's equator. This balanced time of the year gives us a day with equal hours of sunlight and darkness. Equinoxes are often referred to by their Latin names, vernal, meaning Spring (around March 21st) and autumnal, meaning Fall (around September 21st.)

Spring Equinox superstitions:

It is said that during the equinox you can balance a raw egg on its end, or a balance a broom to stand up on its own. (Although this has been proven to work any time of the year - it’s a fun exercise to do on the Equinox.)

A wish made upon seeing the first robin of the Spring will come true as long as you finish making your wish before the robin flies away.

Spring planting:

“Go plant the bean when the moon is light,
and you will find that this is right.
Plant the potatoes when the moon is dark,
and to this you always hark.
But if you vary from this rule,
You will find that you're the fool.
If you always follow this rule to the end,
You will always have money to spend.”

(Plant above-ground bearing crops during a waxing moon & below ground crops during a waning moon.)


"March bustles in on windy feet
And sweeps my doorstep and my street.
She washes and cleans with pounding rains,
Scrubbing the earth of winter stains.
She shakes the grime from carpet green
Till naught but fresh new blades are seen.
Then, house in order, all neat as a pin,
She ushers gentle springtime in."

- Susan Reiner, Spring Cleaning

Images found here.

Balance

Photo from stock.xchng.

Before getting to the topic of this post, I just wanted to thank you all for your kind thoughts regarding my loss.  Your sweet words have been a balm to my sadness.  So many thanks to you.


The last time I met with my women's group, we discussed the upcoming equinox and our thoughts on "balance."  Being that I'm trying to find my own again, I though I would post these ideas to help assist in finding and maintaining balance:

~ Observe the in-between times of dawn and dusk. Note that balance is not necessary exactly ‘equal’ but a fluid fluctuation between one thing and another. Nature is never perfectly equal.

~ Start a meditation practice.  At the very least, spend 5 minutes a day in silence - doing nothing.  Merely sit and breathe.  Focus on your breath.

~ Spring cleaning - a clean, uncluttered environment leaves room for energy to flow. There is a saying “you can’t land a plane on a full runaway.” Remove unwanted or unused items and make room for prosperity to enter.

~ Besides physical cleaning, energetic cleaning can leave a space more balanced and open to beneficial energy. Smudging your home with sage, sprinkling salt water in the corners of each room of your home or walking the perimeter of your home with a bell, singing bowl or rattle are all great ways to cleanse unwanted energies from your home.

~ Having a gratitude practice is a way of acknowledging that which we have and while holding the space of gratitude, attracting that which we desire.

~ Practice “Tadasana” the basic standing pose in yoga. Feel how your body shifts muscles to keep you standing straight. Feel where you are holding in/holding back in your body and release those areas.

~ Do one thing at a time.  Be present.  Zen proverb: "When walking, walk. When eating, eat."

~ Spend time in nature.  Connecting to the flow of the earth, sky and water can do wonders for your spirit.

I hope you all enjoy this time of balance as we enter the Equinox today and tomorrow!