SAMHAIN

this weekend, I celebrate Samhain. The doorway of dark for me and for my friends in the northern part of our world, who celebrate Beltane, the door of light... perfect yin - yang... perfectly balanced. the goddess is wise!

if we could all be more in tune with the coming and going of the seasons, I am sure we would all feel more in balance. But we surround ourselves with 'creature comforts' such as central heating, wood fires, enveloped in insulated homes and sometimes, the seasons can come and go without us really experiencing them...

there is a wealth of information on the internet about Samhain... and I have gathered quite abit over the past few years, to make my own Book of Shadows or my soul journal as I call it.
I like to celebrate these days to help my soul and her thirst for ancient times... so I create little rituals, cook and make magick in my home to suit the season...

I will stack my wood near my door in readiness for my winter season and I will collect kindling, just as my ancestors might have done. I will clean out my chicken coop and give them new straw in their nest boxes. I will start to feed them hot porridge each morning to help them stay warm during the winter months. I will burn the Samhain incense that Daisy sent me last year.
And for Samhain, I am going to cook a chicken dish with apple, thyme and prunes... served with green beans & carrots that I bought from the organic co-op. Next year, I hope to use my own beans & thyme - and maybe even my own apples if I can store some.

Autumn Thyme Apple Chicken
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
cooking spray
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 medium tart green apples, cored and thinly sliced
1 small sweet onion, minced
2 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves or 2 teaspoon dried
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (herb vinegar is okay too)
fresh thyme sprigs for garnish

Preheat oven to 375 F (190 C). Rinse chicken breasts and pat dry. Lightly coat a baking dish with cooking spray. Sprinkle the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Place in a single layer in the baking dish. Arrange apple slices over and around chicken breasts. Sprinkle with the onion and the thyme leaves; pour on the balsamic vinegar. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until chicken is done and no longer pink. Place the chicken on a platter and spoon apples and cooking juices on top. Garnish with thyme sprigs.

Samhain is a time for coming to terms with death, honouring/remembering of those who have passed to the Summerland, and wrapping up/finalizing projects from the year. This is a "dark" time where the darker and more wise parts of the self are brought out into the open and examined. It is a time for looking forward and backward, of seeing time as cyclical, of releasing the energy that has built up over the year. Samhain is the time to remember, to study, to meditate, and to release. . It is also a time to honour our Ancestors ~ (source unknown)
I think it might be time to take Daisy's name from my yahoo chat list, to take her name from my email address book.... it is something that I will struggle to do, I know... I have kept her there, as seeing her name each day, made her death seem not so final... I may even re-read her blog in honour of the friendship that we had...
Samhain is a time of transformation and inner work. Divination is very common during this festival, particularly scrying, whether into the fire, glass or a dark bowl. Past-life regression on this night is often successful. (source unknown)
after dinner, I went into my sacred space and sat, quietly. I closed my eyes and I felt the presence of my ancestors... I felt the presence of Daisy, my dear friend in spirit, I felt the presence of the Marys - Magdalene and Mother.... I chose some cards from my animal deck and my tree oracle deck - I chose Hazel:"seek wisdom in the depths" and I chose Crow:"seek wisdom in inner silence.". a sure message to me that I must take time to be silent and to ponder my inner wisdom that I know I have.

all these little things that I do, really do help me to feel as if I am the wise woman... they help me to feel as if I am connected to my ancestors and they truly, truly, quench my dreadful thirst for times past.
so to each of you - a sacred Samhain or blessed Beltane wherever you may be

blessed be!