Merry meet all,
My garden is beautiful! It presents me with a few challenges but nothing I can’t handle. My lovage is under attack from leaf miners, my blueberry plant had no berries so I moved it into the sun, and there’s been too much rain. I embrace every challenge as a way to learn something new. My lemon balm patch is huge, so I shall divide it in the fall. Though the next question is: where do I move it to? Not sure but I shall do my best to find a new spot.
I know the bees will follow. The bees are happily pollinating in my garden. If all goes well, I shall harvest red onions, tomatoes, peppers, two white onions, celery, a pumpkin ( I hope), and of course, herbs. I can wait for fall though. I want my garden to have a chance. Everyone else is excited about Samhain, and I am like, wait- my garden! Time ticks and ticks. I can wait.
My lavender will soon sport flowers, as will the echinacea, comfrey shows flowers that the bees just love, and all my other herbs are growing just so lovely. That is good, considering the nasty monsoon we just had. There was so much flooding.
But onto happier thoughts: Lughnasadh is almost here! It is the first of the three harvest Sabbats. It is the midpoint between the Summer Solstice and the Autumn Equinox. I know many other people anticipate fall and pumpkins, but I want to help my garden grow and be patient. It is a good time to give thanks for nature’s bounty.
I have already harvested mugwort, lovage, St.John’s Wort and yarrow, kale. I want to bake a special loaf of bread for Lammas. I may make a corn doll too. There are all kinds of rituals to do and recipes to concoct for Lammas. I would love to hear about what is an important ritual for you, dear readers.
I have a lot of corn bread. I may bake a big batch of cornbread and then store some of it in the freezer. But for those of you who would like to hear about a few ways to celebrate Lammas, here are a few suggestions: bake cornbread or any kind of bread, decorate your altar, and enjoy a feast with your family! These are all great ways to use up herbs, incorporate significant colours into your rituals, and burn a few beautiful colourful! candles. Write in your journal and clean up a park space. I sometimes see people laughing at me but I am not the one who is the fool. They should be respecting the Goddess more than they are.
Journalling is very good because you can reflect on the last year. You can reflect on what made you happy or what challenges you overcame. You can express your gratitude for what you have. Some of us are more fortunate than most.
Celebrate Lammas with gratitude and joy. Invite your pagan/ Wiccan friends or your family. Leave an offering for the Goddess and God. While you are at it, leave an offering for the nature critters too!
Blessed be, Spiderwitch
