These are the long days, the hot days following the Summer Solstice. Like each of these days, tomorrow promises to be a long, golden and beautiful day, a benediction to life on Mother Earth, our home planet. We welcome the light and the coming harvests it ensures. Gladly, as these last weeks have been all over the energetic map.
To a lot of us, this summer feels like we’ve been hung out to dry like the laundry, and we’re flapping in the breeze.
To be fair, there’s a lot going on in the world - and in the universe. The women in my world are receiving their gains with gratitude, but they’re also seeing a lot of loss: loss of focus, loss of time, loss of peace, bone loss, loss of direction. These are the personal losses with big implications for whether we are able to show up in the world or not. If it goes on long enough without letting up, we may also stand to lose our initiative.
Resilience wasn’t supposed to mean that we take our losses lying down.
Venus, the evening star, is rising at dusk to bring us into alignment energetically by raising our awareness of the thin line of light and shadow. Right now, she and four other planets are sitting in the same astrological house in the sky. Of those, Jupiter and Mercury are joining Venus in a chorale. Their song calls upon us to look at the structure and function of our communications regarding our own situation in the world, as well as the situations in which others find themselves.
These global losses may feel like a betrayal, so embittered, so political, that we may not feel that there’s a way to do anything that will help. Not even a little bit.
What we learn as we join this interplanetary sing along may give rise to a range of reactive emotions. If this occurs, our frustration will need to be directed so that it has a productive place to land.
Douglas Adams’ “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” would remind us of the obvious: Don’t leave home without a towel. For some of us, that would be a beach towel!
Summer solstice, the longest day, squeezed every morsel of basil scented light from the day. Practitioners will understand that its waxing to fullness is comparable to that of the full moon. Now, as the light wanes, in its ending comes a new beginning, the next part of the journey.
We are also leaving behind the Cancer Full Moon, which signified the emotional realm: nurturing, playful, and loving. Whether we’re drinking water, bathing, or swimming in it, the water element helps us move through our own blocks. This nurturing graces us with the ability to prepare, reflect, and renew with purpose and awareness.
At this time, we are reminded to hydrate often. Whenever possible, we may luxuriate in pools of water, whether we’re in our bathtubs, a mountain spring, or an ocean eddy.
The duality that we experience between light and dark during summer reminds us that with the waning of solstice comes both celebration of harvest and bounty. Two more turns of the wheel of the year await us before the leaves turn:
Lughnasa, or First Harvest, on August 1
Mabon, or Fall Equinox, on Sept. 21
These points on the wheel are our times to honor the deepening wisdom within, tending the inner landscape even as we tend the outer one. As medicine women, we honor all that we harvest in advance of the darkening, cooler months that daily draw near.
At these points, I invite you to perform a simple ritual in honor of the harvest season. A crystal bowl, sparkly stones, flower petals, a candle, and an invocation to Spirit in your own words are all that you need. Express gratitude, then ask to release any stress or pain in whatever way feels right to you. Then, call in your heart’s desires. If you need help with integration, I am here for you.
To a lot of us, this summer feels like we’ve been hung out to dry like the laundry, and we’re flapping in the breeze.
To be fair, there’s a lot going on in the world - and in the universe. The women in my world are receiving their gains with gratitude, but they’re also seeing a lot of loss: loss of focus, loss of time, loss of peace, bone loss, loss of direction. These are the personal losses with big implications for whether we are able to show up in the world or not. If it goes on long enough without letting up, we may also stand to lose our initiative.
Resilience wasn’t supposed to mean that we take our losses lying down.
Venus, the evening star, is rising at dusk to bring us into alignment energetically by raising our awareness of the thin line of light and shadow. Right now, she and four other planets are sitting in the same astrological house in the sky. Of those, Jupiter and Mercury are joining Venus in a chorale. Their song calls upon us to look at the structure and function of our communications regarding our own situation in the world, as well as the situations in which others find themselves.
These global losses may feel like a betrayal, so embittered, so political, that we may not feel that there’s a way to do anything that will help. Not even a little bit.
What we learn as we join this interplanetary sing along may give rise to a range of reactive emotions. If this occurs, our frustration will need to be directed so that it has a productive place to land.
Douglas Adams’ “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” would remind us of the obvious: Don’t leave home without a towel. For some of us, that would be a beach towel!
Summer solstice, the longest day, squeezed every morsel of basil scented light from the day. Practitioners will understand that its waxing to fullness is comparable to that of the full moon. Now, as the light wanes, in its ending comes a new beginning, the next part of the journey.
We are also leaving behind the Cancer Full Moon, which signified the emotional realm: nurturing, playful, and loving. Whether we’re drinking water, bathing, or swimming in it, the water element helps us move through our own blocks. This nurturing graces us with the ability to prepare, reflect, and renew with purpose and awareness.
At this time, we are reminded to hydrate often. Whenever possible, we may luxuriate in pools of water, whether we’re in our bathtubs, a mountain spring, or an ocean eddy.
The duality that we experience between light and dark during summer reminds us that with the waning of solstice comes both celebration of harvest and bounty. Two more turns of the wheel of the year await us before the leaves turn:
Lughnasa, or First Harvest, on August 1
Mabon, or Fall Equinox, on Sept. 21
These points on the wheel are our times to honor the deepening wisdom within, tending the inner landscape even as we tend the outer one. As medicine women, we honor all that we harvest in advance of the darkening, cooler months that daily draw near.
At these points, I invite you to perform a simple ritual in honor of the harvest season. A crystal bowl, sparkly stones, flower petals, a candle, and an invocation to Spirit in your own words are all that you need. Express gratitude, then ask to release any stress or pain in whatever way feels right to you. Then, call in your heart’s desires. If you need help with integration, I am here for you.
