Another Wee Funeral

Sadly I found one of my chipmunk friends dead yesterday. Just like I had previously posted I held a small funerary ritual for her and then wrapped her body in a linen cloth and buried her in our yard. Her cute little face and antics will be missed.

An Afternoon of Wildcrafting

Yesterday I went wildcrafting in one of my favourite spots, spending a couple of hours harvesting to replenish some of my herb supplies. It was a lovely day and I had equally lovely company with me too.

I like to wildcraft with others so I can have an extra set of eyes and ears, but I only go with those I completely trust to keep my spots a secret, so they are not over harvested {I talk a bit about this in my Wildcrafting Etiquette post}. This particular area is especially important to me because this is where I get a good portion of my rowan berries and sweetfern.

Before I got to harvesting I made my way to the spot where I make my offerings to the spirits of the area. After that we also spent some time just enjoying the beauty of the place. Below are some photos of our day.

The offerings.

One of the lovely rowans.

A place that I call Hagstone Rock.

All sorts of pretties, including golden rod.

Even though we came across all sorts of fungi, I didn't harvest any. That will be for the next trip.

Lots of signs of bears down this pathway.

Himalayan balsam {thanks Cathy for letting me know what they are!}

Harvest specimens: yarrow, milkweed pods, rowan berries, tansy, golden rod, staghorn sumac berries, and sweetfern.

Sláinte!

Laurel

A Prayer to Macha for Safety

I have been speaking to a few other Pagans about what type of magical practices we do to keep or make ourselves feel safe, which reminded me of this prayer that I came up with a few years back for this very reason.

The prayer is to the Irish Goddess Macha, who among other things is a sovereignty Goddess. Feel free to use it yourself and change it as you wish. As well, I would love to further this discussion, so also feel free to share any practices or prayers that you like to use to stay safe.

If I Should Face Danger...

May I have the forewarning of a prophetess,

May I be fleet-footed as the swiftest mare,

May I be fearsome as a battle fury,

May I trick my enemies as the cleverest crow.

Whosoever shall try to harm me or

Invade my sovereignty,

May they know the justice of

My Dark Lady

For nine ages.

*********

Sláinte!

Laurel

A Good Start to the First Harvest

mixed grain loaf

Things have been quite busy around here the last few weeks, but thankfully I have had time to celebrate Lughnasadh and have been able to spend a lot of time in our garden.

Just like with the other cross quarter days I observe Lughnasadh over a period of a few weeks instead of just a day or two. While mostly associated with a time to honour Lugh and Tailtiu {and I do honour Them as well}, my main personal focus at this time is Macha.

One of the rituals I like to do around Lughnasadh is a reaping blessing, which as you can see below from my adaptation of a reaping blessing from Carmina Gadelica is traditionally done on a Tuesday. Lughnasadh Eve fell on a Tuesday this year, which is when I originally wanted to do it. Unfortunately the weather was really shoddy that day; stuck indoors, I setup our seasonal altar on Lughnasadh Eve.

Lughnasadh morning I ended up carrying out the reaping blessing the next day, along with a nice harvest.

On Tuesday of the feast at the rise of the sun,
And the back of the bountiful fruits to the east,
I will go forth with my basket under my arm,
And I will pluck up the fruit.
While the harvested fruit is in my grasp,
I will raise mine eye upwards,
I will turn me on my heel quickly,
Rightway as travels the sun
From the airt of the east to the west,
From the airt of the north with motion calm
To the very core of the airt of the south.
I will give thanks to the Hosts of grace
For the growing crops of the ground,
They will give food to ourselves and to the Tribe
According as They disposeth to us.
Macha, Airmid, Flidais and Bride,
Gods, Ancestors, and Nature Spirits kind.

~ adaptation of a Reaping Blessing from Carmina Gadelica

blue jay bush bean harvest

The rest of the day was spent baking bread and making a yummy dinner and offering rituals in the evening.

A few days later I made more offering incense for Macha as the ingredients had become available once again. One of the blends I created is burnt in thanks for the bounty of the fields, blessing of the harvest, and for abundance in general; the other blend is for divination, magical workings, connecting with the dead and for battles. These two blend will be among the incense I will have available in the store.

Once more crops begin to ripen in our garden, we will then have our "big" Lughnasadh feast which will close things up. To see how our garden is doing, you can go check out a recent post over at my other blog.

Sláinte!

Laurel

Collecting Seeds

I spent a bit this morning collecting seeds from various of my flowers. Many of them will give off a bit at a time, so I will need to keep an eye out on them if I want to have any control over their scattering.

Once my shop is finally up and running I will also be selling seeds for plants that I use for healing and magical purposes, and perhaps some edibles as well. Pictured below are some of the types of seed that I will most likely be selling.

Sláinte!

Laurel

Opium poppy.

Swamp rose mallow, common foxglove, and blue columbine.

Light purple datura.

North Bay Pagan Fellowship

 

There is a new group for younger Pagans in North Bay which is open to folks from any path. The North Bay Pagan Fellowship is welcoming new members, for more information you can contact them at their website.

Sláinte!

Laurel