SAMHAIN - A Celebration of Life

 Merry Meet, my friends.

As we approach another turn of the wheel and the thinning of the veil, Samhain is the perfect time for reflection and celebration.

As with anyone else you would visit, start with a cleansing bath or shower. Meditate on who you want to communicate with. This can be a single person or multiples; though I do caution not to over indulge. There will be other Samhains. Is there someone who left you with questions on their passing? Or perhaps someone you never had the opportunity to meet? This is the perfect time to bring them closer and tell them how much they've meant to you, even in their absence. Remember, they're never far away and have always been watching over you.

If you've not already done so, change your altar setting. Give the surface a good cleansing then bring in all the Samhain vibes of celebrating loved ones. Include any pictures you might have.  Include any personal items, such as jewelry. This lets them know you are honoring them. 

One of my favorite witch YouTubers is Magical Crafting  In THIS video she talks about Samhain Rituals and Altar ideas.

Another way to honor them is to host a 'dumb supper'. I've never cared for that term, so I call them 'empty chair'. Set a place for an honored guest at your table. This is a silent meal where you allow space for a passed loved one to take part in a meal with you. They will communicate in their own way if you keep the silence and allow them the opportunity to do so.

Your supper might include their favorite meal or items that celebrate the end of the season such as fresh vegetables (particularly root vegetables), meats such as venison, pork, or beef. Nothing says welcome in like a hearty stew and fresh bread. The Witch's Cookery provides great instruction on rustic breads as well as cakes and other treats for your guest, and for you. HERE is her post from three years ago on celebrating Samhain.

Take time for yourself. This is the perfect time for reflection over the past year. Journal to reflect on your year. Write down things you no longer want to focus on and burn the paper during your ritual. You can write them on paper or even a leaf you might have picked up from a quiet walk.

I love this simple ritual from Alwyn Oak. Once you've written down the things you wish to let go of - on a leaf or even a leaf cut from paper, Like the trees, I can let go. 

You can do all of these things, even if you're still in the broom closet. You might need to do a visual burning of the paper/ leaf, but everything else can be done and no one the wiser. The silent supper might be the tricky one but you can serve the foods, celebrating the people you have in your life. Let them know what they mean to you. 

 

A Tarot reading is always a good idea. At this point in the wheel, lay a spread asking what you need to face before the new year begins. You might even find out what you need to let go of. 

Carving pumpkins dates back centuries when root vegetables were traditional carved with scary faces to ward off any evil spirits that might cross the thinned veil. In today's history, those scary faces have morphed into anything from funny to absolutely macabre. A Jack-O-Lantern is a great way to keep those spirits away during a ritual.

The thinning of the veil is a great time for divination work; allowing past souls to guide you on your journey. To help guide spirits to your home, place a candle in the West window.

Take time to rest and to rejuvenate. You want to step into the new year refreshed and ready to accept whatever may be in your future. 

For me:

I hope to start the morning with a walk in our woods as dawn approaches. Listen to what the forest has to share. A quiet breakfast of apple cake and coffee with Bob before I head out to celebrate a friend's birthday. Sadly, she'll be working but that means my day is spent in my favorite coffee shop. On the way, I plan to visit a Civil War encampment to do some soul searching and let them know my thoughts on their sacrifice. 

If you've never been soul searching, take your camera to a cemetery and watch for facial recognition boxes in your view finder. They are there. When you find anyone, talk to them. 

Chinese Buffet for supper before I head home, looking at all the spooky decorated houses. 

Above all, have a safe Samhain

Blessed Be!

~Rain

THOUGHTFUL MONDAY

Merry Meet, everyone! 

I hope your month is going well. Are you ready for the Turn of the Wheel? What are your hopes & dreams for the new year?  Feel free to share and let us help you manifest!

Blessed Be!

~ Rain

 

PHOTO FRIDAY

Merry Meet, everyone!

We've had cold rains in the Ozarks this week.  Some in the western part of the state even saw skiffs of snow and sleet.  

Way too early for this. I'm watching the forecast in hopes of seeing the moon tomorrow night. We're moving closer to another turn of the wheel.

Blessings!

~Rain

 

SAMHAIN

Because I have some new folks on the path, I'll be sharing 'educational' videos from Hearth Witch as well as my own thoughts.

Since Samhain is the turning of the wheel, I want to talk about Celebrating this pivotal point on the path.

HearthWitch gives some great information in a way anyone can come away with.

I'd love to hear your thoughts. How do you incorporate your Samhain celebration into your everyday life?

Blessings

~Rain

TURN OF THE WHEEL - Ostara

Spring is trying to appear in the Ozarks. Our temperatures have been a roller coaster, right along with the weather patterns. Rain comes in spurts but when it rains - it pours. We are under a Flash Flood Advisory until Wednesday. 

I planted over 100 bulbs last fall. This is one of the beauties. I love the vibrant blue. There are also soft pink ones. 

As with every spring in our yard, I have an abundance of daffodils from previous owners. I call this set On Golden Pond as they are planted in a large grouping in the back yard. Of course, that means mowing around them until about mid-June when the leaves die back.

I've also done a major cleaning on and around my altar and bookcase. While I don't have everything in place yet, the area is looking much more presentable. I'll be sharing pictures tomorrow and Wednesday for short posts this week while I try to get everything on track. 

How does your garden grow? Or are you buried beneath mountains of snow? Stop in, pour a cup of tea and chat. I love visitors.

Blessings!

~Rain

BLESSED SAMHAIN - and my BOS materials

Merry Meet, everyone. Blessings on this magical evening. I hope this new Turn of the Wheel is full of good things.

I had hoped to have my Book of Shadows constructed by this night, ready to be blessed. But between hunting down supplies and the other things going on, the best I have is everything gathered. The only item you will not find in the pictures is the paper I will be using for pages. I have chosen an 8.5 x 11 caramel parchment. I want torn edges so the 400+ pages will take a bit of time. Those will all have to be torn on the three sides before they can be put in the book.

I'm mashing up two different BOS designs I found on YouTube. The first is for the basic construction of the outside by jamiebookofshadows. Jamie has done a lovely seven-part series in creating a replica of the BOS from the television show, Charmed. While I have no desire to emulate their BOS, I did favor his construction. Here are the supplies for my cover:

While I would like to have used a real leather, this Marine Vinyl from JoAnn's felt right when I picked it up. I bought enough to do a full 8.5 x 11 BOS as well as a smaller 4x6 or may 3x5 travel BOS. Not sure I'll be using the hinges but I do like the corner protectors from Tim Holtz. Jamie uses a cardboard tube to get his 'curved' spine. Since acquiring this piece from my friend/ store manager at my local Office Depot, I've learned that you can curve any chip board by scoring the length in 1/4" increments then gently conforming the scores to the shape you want. The paper will be my inside cover.  The only thing I don't have in the picture is the Tyvek I've also learned will help strengthen the spine. 

The suede lacing is for binding the pages together. I waffled back and forth between the different methods. I wanted the 8.5 x 11 (and have had the ream of paper for years for this project) so signatures wasn't going to work... though I may use that method for the travel size. I didn't like the 3-ring binder idea. I got a cold vibe from that form. But I fell in love with the method used by Isis Chandler at Pagan Scrapbook Supply.  I want to make my own BOS or I'd have been purchasing one of hers in a heartbeat. In the video below, she talks about their book construction.

So I'll be cutting binding strips and punching holes for awhile as well as tearing those page edges.

I'm not an artist by any means. I can't draw a decent stick figure (though I use to be good at horses - go figure!). But I am good with stamps and coloring so I'll be using those as well as stencils, die cuts for the insides. I recently ordered THIS set from CraftersCompanion. I should have the set in the next week or so.  I have other stamps in my huge supply to work with as well. 

Here is a picture of some of the interior supplies I've gathered:

I'm excited to finally begin putting my BOS together. As I said earlier, I've had the page paper as well as the chip board for the cover for years. I do have two writing deadlines I have to get past first, then I can devote a day or two for construction.

Many Blessings

~Rain

BOOK OF SHADOWS - Eden

I found her!  Her name is Eden. Here's the first of her videos that I watched. I just like her laid back style.

Eden will celebrate her first Turn of the Wheel this week and I am so happy for her. From the moment you step on the path, an incredible journey of self-discovery begins.

One of the things Eden brings up in this video is about how much, if any at all, of our BOS do we share.  I've heard this discussion surface in the past and am reaching a happy middle. I am blaming the Libra in me ;-)

I think that our BOS can be a very personal, if not the most personal, tool in our craft. And while I would not be comfortable sharing my spells with the world or letting others touch my book, when it comes to the artwork, I hope that I could inspire others as Amethyst and Eden have with theirs.

So what's your take on the Show & Tell of your BOS? I'd love to hear from you
Creative Blessings
~Rain

THE SILJA PROJECT - Part 1

I got my book in the mail last week, just a couple days prior to Samhain. Not a lot of time to look through the pages as hubby was headed home after 3 weeks on the boat and we were heading to Nashville to see the granddaughters on Friday. Then, of course, there was Samhain (which I went to bed early as I was driving the next day) and Nano (which I wrote very little on because I was too buys playing with my girls).

So here we are. I've looked through the book and I don't see any issues with my book being anything like hers. My book is to be more about being a 'prepper' of sorts - being prepared ahead of time for Sabbats, Esbats, rituals, etc. With my theme shelved for the moment, let's take a look at Silja's layout.

I LOVE that the book is hard bound with an encased spiral binding. Makes a nice appearance on the shelf while still offering a 'lay-flat' concept. The graphics almost have a gardener's journal appearance. The contents are broke up into the months and Solstices beginning with December and January - Yule and Winter Solstice. I found this odd since the turn of the wheel begins with Samhain. I would have thought that would be the best starting point. BUT... and this is a major point - this is why we need to educate ourselves from more than one source. Everyone has a different viewpoint. So here's Silja's 'chapters':
December and January - Yule and Winter Solstice
February - Imbolc
March and April - Ostara and the Spring Equinox
May - Beltane
June and July - LItha and Summer Solstice
August - Lughnasa and Lammas
September - Mabon and the Autumn Equinox
October and November - Samhain and Halloween
The Moon Rituals

Each Chapter has a title page containing a spell, basic information and the backside contains a pocket for storing your own notes.
She talks about symbols then the rest of the chapter is a 'dayplanner' layout with approximately 6 lines under each date for making notes

So how do I plan to use Silja's book? I'm going to use the dayplanner to mark when I need to do things in 'preparation' for an upcoming ritual. Silja's book will help me work on my own book's outline. Since our turn of the wheel has begun, I'll start with the October/ November chapter then circle back around to December/ January.

Blessings
~Rain