Merry meet all,
I have a busy month ahead of me. I’m taking two courses online, 1 the Short Story Fundamentals with Writers Digest University and 2, the Introductory Course at the Herbal Academy. I love the Herbal course so much. I mean I like the writing course but the herb bug has bit me and bit me hard. I came home with a bottle of organic apple cider vinegar, a big jar of honey, index cards, a kitchen scale, an array of herbs- calendula, echinacea root, rose petals, elderberries, nettle, astralagus root, licorice root, eleuthero (?), ginger root, fennel seed, and cheesecloth, a beeswax candle. Wow. I was so tired after that excursion. Yesterday I bought a meter of muslin to make sachets from, and the herb supplies above. I feel like a real herbalist now. I grow lavender, lemon balm and catnip in the garden.
I am eager to try the recipes. I already have several books about herbs. I look forward to expanding my knowledge. I may even get a new career out of this. I’m storing the notes in a binder and decorating the pages with butterfly stickers. If any of you are interested in learning more about the Herbal Academy, I’ve included a link: https://theherbalacademy.com/?awt_a=5cXw&awt_l=Bv79G&awt_m=mUTf3FOR61wS3Xw.
I treated myself to a large cauldron. The cauldron is 8.5″ inches high and 7/5 in diameter. The cauldron is even adorned with a pentacle. I love it. It is so beautiful and big! I blessed it on my altar and can’t wait to use it in rituals.
The next turn in the Wheel of the Year is Mabon! I love Mabon. I am bittersweet because I love my garden. Autumn is my time. I feel most alive during the autumnal season. Hello, yeah I am a Witch. Of course, I love fall. I even have a pumpkin patch this year. However, I have only yet seen male flowers. The killing frost is drawing near, which makes me nervous. The tomato plants are just now bearing fruit. I can’t bring these plants indoors. They will just have to grow faster. I chopped the aged lily vines down this morning, shredded them and added them to the compost bin. The other night we had racccons on the prowl. The mischievous prowlers wanted the bird seed. Penny crouched on the post, her ears flattened against her head and hissed at the interloper. The nerve of that intruder! They moved on to the neighbours yard where there are many bird feeders. I am sure they had a good meal.
Living this close to nature and still in the city makes life here interesting. I know many people see raccoons as pests but to me, they are a sign of the blessings and gifts from the Goddess. Deer appear in my garden too. Birds of all feathers, cats, the neighbours dog and insects are frequently in the yard too. It’s brimming with life. I am not complaining.
The potato patch has big long vines. I can’t wait to harvest ripe earthy spuds! I can’t wait to taste a home-grown potato! My onions are not doing so well. I did notice though that they tend to grow better if grown near potatoes. The tomato vines are covered with yellow flowers, a good sign. The cucumbers are still growing and I should have some for harvesting soon. The chard is now growing in a big pot, nice and big. I moved the chard from the veggie patch to a pot. It’s growing better because it gets more sunlight.
My apartment is nestled in the heart of nature. This is the right place for a nature loving Witch like me. The nasturtiums have taken over, the lemon balm has also taken over, and the mint is following the lemon balm’s example. Next spring, I plan to divide the HUGE patch of lemon balm. Bees love lemon balm. The botanical lemon balm’s name is Melissa officials. The Greek word for bees is Melissa. Lemon balm has been used for herbal purposes for 2,000 years!
Blessings, Spiderwitch )O(
