Dear, Gentle and Strong Children of the Earth,
Fall is here! The Autumnal Equinox is happening. The time when Day and Night are of equal length is upon us. It's time to reflect upon the abundance we all enjoy. Step outside and look at what's happening in Nature: every plant is giving and giving and giving. Vegetables and fruits are spilling open onto the ground, literally giving us their seeds. The trees are returning the light they've stored up in their leaves, gracing us with their vibrant colors and their soft sounds.
I think of this time of year as "The Great Give-away."
Since humans have been humans, people have celebrated this time of year as a time to share. As fall begins, we're all aware that the light is changing. We can feel the Great Wheel of the Year turning. Harvest feasts are an ancient tradition based on sharing the abundance of what has come your way. Because we are social beings, we depend on each other for our survival. No one lives very long alone & unprotected.
In the studies I've done, the Indigenous peoples of the American Northwest have a long history of Give-Aways. The Potlatch tradition. It had to do with creating status, but also with the very real care that no one amass too much wealth at the expense of others. If that were to happen, the Tribe might become out of Balance. That threatened everyone.
Indigenous peoples all over the Earth have within the framework of their cultures the idea of Balance. Environmental and Social Balance but also their own physical, emotional, mental and spiritual balance.
At this time of year, most Pagans will find a way to step outside into the stillness of the Fall Equinox and allow themselves to notice what they are seeing, and smelling and tasting and breathing in. In that way, they partake of the teachings of Mother Earth: Let go. Breathe. Come into Balance. Let go. Breathe. Come into Balance. Let go. Breathe. Come into Balance.
May all Beings feel safe.
Blessed Be,
Mary
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From Blossoms
by Li-Young Lee
From blossoms comes
this brown paper bag of peaches
we bought from the boy
at the bend in the road where we turned toward
signs painted Peaches.
From laden boughs, from hands,
from sweet fellowship in the bins,
comes nectar at the roadside, succulent
peaches we devour, dusty skin and all,
comes the familiar dust of summer, dust we eat.
O, to take what we love inside,
to carry within us an orchard, to eat
not only the skin, but the shade,
not only the sugar, but the days, to hold
the fruit in our hands, adore it, then bite into
the round jubilance of peach.
There are days we live
as if death were nowhere
in the background; from joy
to joy to joy, from wing to wing,
from blossom to blossom to
impossible blossom, to sweet impossible blossom.
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The Photograph at the top of the page is from The Farmer's Almanac.
I regret not being able to credit the photographer but I couldn't find a name.
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Below are some links to more information about Equinox and to my daughter Justine's podcast "In a Time of Ancient Gods" for anyone interested in Mythology or the television series, Xena: Princess Warrior.
https://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/september-equinox.html
https://www.learnreligions.com/all-about-mabon-the-autumn-equinox-2562286
https://www.thetetraktys.com/2018/mabon-solitary-ritual-fall-equinox/
Here's the podcast:
https://podtail.se/podcast/in-a-time-of-ancient-gods-the-xena-podcast/
And for one of my favorite astrologers: