Cooler temperatures. Boots, sweaters, and scarves. Football! Picking apples in the orchard and visiting a pumpkin patch. Apple cider spiked with Fireball Whiskey (if you haven't tried this, you're missing out. Seriously). Trees ablaze in colors of yellow, gold, orange, and red. Halloween! Pumpkin spice everything. What's not to love about autumn? Fall is definitely one of my favorite seasons. Ok, I like them all for different reasons but for me, fall means the end of the relentlessly cruel summer heat and is the gateway to winter which I absolutely adore.
With today being the Autumnal Equinox/ Mabon, I wanted to share a few ways to celebrate and usher in the new season. For those of you that don't know, there are two equinoxes, the Autumnal and the Vernal (which is the one in the spring) every year and two solstices. The Autumnal Equinox's energy is all about balance, gratitude, harvest, and letting go of what no longer serves us. In Pagan and Wiccan traditions, Mabon is the celebration of the second harvest, the first being in mid-August and celebrated as the Sabbat Lammas or Lughnasadh. Mabon is often considered the Witch's Thanksgiving. It is a giving of thanks for a bountiful harvest and the many blessings that have been bestowed upon us. It is also the perfect time to look back on what was planted, metaphysically speaking, in the spring and early summer and take note of what is now being harvested because of our hard work.
With the Equinox also being about balance, we need to be aware of our light and our dark, masculine and feminine, holding on and letting go, work and play, care for self and care of others. Are we living in balance? Where can we improve upon this in our lives?
And just like the trees that lose their leaves, we too need to shed what is no longer serving us. Mabon's energy and the time following that up until Samhain is a wonderful time for decluttering both mundane and spiritually. Most people associate springtime with deep cleaning and decluttering but it is just as important to do this in the fall to "ready our nest" for the dark half of the year. Cutting energetic cords, banishing toxic relationships, releasing negative thought patterns, and working to break bad habits are all ways to energetically declutter.
Here are some ways that you can celebrate the harvest Sabbat of Mabon.
1. Participate in fall-type activities such as apple picking, hayrides, corn mazes, or visiting a pumpkin patch.
2. Make a meal or dessert from harvested foods. Think apple pie, pumpkin bread, roasted veggies, apple cider, etc.
3. Equinoxes are a day of equal light and equal dark- balance. You can celebrate this aspect by honoring balance in your life through yoga, a thorough house cleaning and/ or decluttering, honoring the Divine Masculine and Feminine, or light a white and a black candle to represent the light and dark within you.
4. We all know that autumn is a time of death. The leaves change and fall from the trees; fields become barren after the last harvest; all of the summer flowers begin to wither away. Celebrate this lifecycle by honoring the dark. Stargazing is a great way to do this as well as sitting on the patio at night with a nice fire going in the firepit while drinking some of that apple cider you spent all day making.
5. Make a fall craft (see Pinterest for endless ideas).
6. Get out into nature for a fall leaf hike and collect leaves, pinecones, and acorns.
7. Set up an altar honoring all that is Autumn.
8. Give thanks by making a gratitude list.
Since I mentioned giving thanks, I want to take a few moments to sit in gratitude. I believe that we often get too wrapped up in the things that we don't have or the things that are going wrong instead of focusing on the things that we DO have and the things that ARE going RIGHT. We are so accustomed to the everyday struggle of "keeping up with the Jones'" that we forget to be grateful on a daily basis. Sure we practice this at Thanksgiving here in America but what about the other 364 days of the year? So do me a favor, please. Sit down and make a list of at least 5 things you are grateful for. Here are 5 of mine:
* I am grateful for my two amazing children. They are the lights of my life. I am so grateful that they are healthy and that they think for themselves instead of just following the crowd.
* I am grateful for my best friend. She is my soul sister and fellow badass hiker babe and adventurer. She has lifted me up when I needed it most, makes me laugh like no other, and has made me believe in friendship again.
*I am grateful for my Clan and my path. My coven sisters and my High Priestess have become my family. My path is a continual journey of learning and I love it more every day.
* I am grateful that I get to call the beautiful state of Colorado home. This place is an outdoor enthusiast's playground. Hiking, biking, skiing, fishing, rock climbing. So much fun to be had here and I am taking advantage of it!
* I am grateful for my health. My good health allows me to do all of the outdoor things that I love so much.
Well, witches, I'm headed out to meet my Clan for ritual so I better shut this down. I guess now that it's officially fall we can expect to see some Christmas lights going up. Do NOT get me started on that. *Insert angry emoji face here*. Enjoy this day. Be grateful for it because there are so many that didn't get that chance.
Peace, Love, and Light. Blessed Be.
