Wishing all my friends in the south a magical Lughnasadh, and those in the north an enchanting and enchanted Imbolc… On this day of gratitude and thanksgiving, I am grateful for my love-filled life, and all the blessings I have – a loving hubby, close family and friends, clean water, good food, good health, a job that pays the bills, a wonderful home, the right to choose, the right to vote, the right to an education, access to health care and (for the most part) equality…
From Into the Mists…
The ritual Carlie attended was Lughnasadh, also known as Lammas, which is celebrated in the first week of August in the northern hemisphere and the first week of February in the south, and marks the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. It’s the first harvest festival, traditionally a time of feasting and of thanksgiving for the life-giving properties of the grain, as well as a recognition of the cycle of sowing and reaping of the crops – and of the symbolic things you grow and create in your life.
It’s a day of harvesting the fruits of your labours and acknowledging your successes and what you’ve achieved in the past year. Celebrate the goals you’ve reached and have your own festival of gratitude, in whatever form that takes. Toast your success, throw a party or do something special to mark the occasion. Make a list of all the things you’ve gained over the past year – the gifts you’ve been given, the new talents you’ve developed, the friends you’ve made, the experiences you’ve had, the healings you’ve received – and give thanks for it all.
Then, out of gratitude and in the spirit of the ancestors who shared the bounty of their harvest with those less well off, pay your good fortune forward. Donate to a local charity, as Rose and her friends do, lend to a business in the developing world, or give your time to help someone, ensuring the energy of abundance continues and is strengthened. Give joyfully, with no expectation of receiving anything in return. And work out small ways you can make a difference to the people around you all year long as well.
As the energy begins to subtly slow, this is also a time to be patient and to trust that everything is as it should be, because there are still harvests to come. Not everything has to be achieved right now – some things take longer to manifest. The lesson of the Wheel of the Year is that everything continues, everything happens when it should, and everything is eternal.
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