Halloween

Halloween is the modern name of the ancient Irish and Scottish holiday of Samhain (pronounced SOW-win), a Celtic-Gaelic word meaning “summers-end”. It begins at dusk on October 31, and marks the doorway to the dark half of the Celtic year, the opening of a new cycle.

In the 7th-century CE the Pope established All Saints’ Day, originally on May 13, and in the following century it was moved to November 1. The evening before All Saints’ Day became a holy, or hallowed, eve and thus Samhain became Halloween.

The Reformation put an end to the religious holiday among Protestants, although in Britain Halloween continued to be celebrated as a secular holiday. The celebration of Halloween was mostly forbidden among the early American colonists, until the 1800s.

Saturday is my day for proaction: Proaction is taking initiative to anticipate and shape future events rather than simply reacting to circumstances as they happen. Some people think Covey should've just used the word ACT, but proaction requires a thought: "I could do this or I could do that; I choose to do this."

We are in the yin time of the waning gibbous moon - a time to receive the fruits of our labors, a time of quiet, internal, heart-driven, intentional Being-ness.

Agenda Today:

1. Gratitude meditation:

2. Weekly "First Things First"

3. Proaction and reciprocity plans

4. Celebrate the darkness

1. Gratitude meditation:

Every month after the full moon, in the quiet-energy yin time of the waning moon, I practice a love meditation that progresses from receptivity, to gratitude, to generosity. 

The most powerful receiving is accompanied with sincere gratitude, so today I will look again at the things I want to receive this month, and how I can better feel (and show) my heart-felt gratitude:

• Energetic stockpiling of Christmas gifts - take time each day to send thoughts of gratitude to those I am crafting for
• Synergy with my teams - - meditate on my teams and feel the gratitude for each one
• A clear and simple home - whenever I clear a space, take a moment to savor it
• Equanimity and calm - feel my calm, record my calm, celebrate my calm.
• Better understanding of neurodiversity so I can offer support, especially with reading and writing - list out the wonderful differences and give thanks.
• Abundant wise writing - tell my readers thank you.

Practice a love meditation, and end by feeling and expressing gratitude - send a prayer of thanksgiving to the universe for all I have in my life.

2. Weekly "First Things First":

Saturday is a great day to journal about my dreams and goals for my life roles: What GREAT things do I want to accomplish? How will I serve people? How will I use my talents? How will I stretch myself? How can I become an “island of excellence”? What is essential?

Journal: We are sliding deeper into fall and the darkness of the year. Big themes for next week = Clerking, Voting, Leaves, brainstorming, and an Honorable Harvest. I've also got a big clerking event to prepare for with lots of details. My biggest projects are door covering, box decorating, leaf projects, and writing for the gathering. I will stretch myself to be an awake clerk and Earth Grandmother, aware of my family's and community's needs.

3. Proaction and reciprocity plans:

Once a week I try to define achievable, meaningful goals in areas of Right Action, and prioritize the goals and tasks with the greatest long-term impact.

My plan for Earthcare Action in the next week:

• Sat: IFEK calendar work
• Sun: Print agenda + EC Meeting: Discuss new EC brochure
• Mon: EC notes/report + P& J agenda and link + VOTE
• Th: P&J Meeting: Season welcoming actions

My plans for clerking service in the next week:

• Sat: Print and sign minutes
• Sun: Post minutes + Clerk meeting and learn new names
• M: Follow up with no reply's + Organize set up
• W: Write Quaker Process speach
• Ask Annie about Nom com
• F: Write Nuts and Bolts page
• Sat: Snacks, coffee + Clerk's Gathering

4. Celebrate the darkness:

Just as my grandsons have fully embraced the spookiness of the season, so must I, by forging a connection to the essence of the change happening in nature; by acknowledging death's reality.

This week I will find small ways to prepare for the darkness of winter, and immerse myself in the transformation going on around me.

• A stoic meditation on my own death.
• Photo collection of death in nature.
• Sit with the ghosts of my dead loved-ones.
• Write about bio-diversity loss.