Mother's Day Rogation Sunday

Today is Mother's Day, and a low-key time for me, now that my daughter is a mother and I am a grandmother!

And it's also Rogation-tide, beginning on the Sunday five weeks after Easter and continuing for four more days, through Ascension Day on Thursday. 

Rogation is an early Christian tradition of singing psalms and chanting prayers of petition for God's protection on crops, beasts and people. Since medieval days, parishioners in Britain would walk around the parish boundaries, bearing a cross and banners, and asking for God to bless the crops, livestock, and fishing holes. The procession was called 'beating the bounds'; it helped everyone to remember the parish boundaries, in the time before maps were commonplace.

These boundary walks were also known as ‘gang days’ from the Anglo Saxon word ‘gangen’- to go. The parish would bond together as a community, offer charity to poor people they met along the way, and the priest would stop to preach at each prominent tree or landmark.

Now Rogation-tide is celebrated more as a time to honor the gift of creation of the land and waters, to offer thanksgiving for the labors on land and water that feed us, and to pray for stewardship of the earth.

Agenda Today:

1. Journal query

2. Mother Meditation

3. Monthly journal brainstorm

4. Brainstorm my summer

5. Cleansing 

6. Beat the bounds

7. Bless my garden

8. Make Rammalation Bisquits

April Third-Quarter Moon

Tonight is the waning Third Quarter moon of April. Today's moon energy is yin - quiet, internal, heart-driven, intentional Being-ness. At this phase we can ease off a bit on actively pursuing goals, slow down, go within, and attend to inner work, renewal, and self-care.

Agenda today:

Agenda: 

1. Read "The Book of Doing and Being"

2. Meditation and Evaluation Journal

3. Ritual for Release and Realignment

4. Projects for the week

5. Surrender, rest, recuperate

Monday Monday

Monday is my day to reset for the week and get my ducks in a row - make some plans for health and home, and get ready for a week of fun activities with my grandsons.

Agenda this week:

1. Gratitude meditation

2. Read "The Spirited Walker"

3. Clearing and Home projects

4. Grandson fun

Easter Sunday

2021 egg hunt

Easter is the most important and joyful of all Christian holy days because it marks the resurrection of Jesus. Easter always comes after the spring equinox, when lots of things in nature are returning to life; specifically Easter falls on the first Sunday after the full Moon on or just after the equinox.

The English word Easter comes from the Old English Eastre, which was the name for the spring season.

Easter is the penultimate time of hope, renewal and new life, which is at the heart of the message that Christians wish to proclaim and live in the world. I see this as a reminder to live each day as a new day, and to have faith that the actions I take will have transforming power in the world.

Agenda today:

1. Read "Revolutionary Witchcraft"

2. Greet the Easter sunrise with joy
3. Love meditation

4. Egg hunt

First Quarter Moon and Navratri Part 3

Navratri continues for the final three nights. The nine nights of Navratri are broken up into sets of three, and during each a different aspect of Shakti is meditated upon. For these final three nights we honor and thank the Divine Mother as Saraswati, who is "the essence of self". Saraswati’s wisdom and knowledge leads to enlightenment, happiness, and peace.

And Tonight is the First Quarter Moon; we are one-quarter of the way through the moon cycle. The moon is waxing - getting larger - until it's full again. Now is the time to remain flexible, use my obstacles as fuel for growth, and show full effort for priorities.

I use this March quarter moon's energy to create hope.

Agenda Today:

1. Morning meditation and mantra

2. Journal queries

3. Make a full effort plan

4. Add to the altar

5. Proaction and reciprocity plans

Navratri Continues

 Navratri continues tonight with the visit of Lakshmi. 

The word navratri means nine nights; These nights are broken up into sets of three, and during each set we meditate on a different aspect of Shakti (the universal principle of energy and creativity, Mother Earth, and the feminine power in each of us) - first the Goddesses Durga, then Lakshmi, and then Saraswati.

Each of the three goddesses signifies a stage of the spiritual journey we all go through: Durga’s strength and energy creates an opening, Lakshmi’s success and fortune nurtures growth, and Saraswati’s wisdom and knowledge leads to enlightenment, happiness, and peace. Tonight we honor and thank the Divine Mother as Lakshmi, the Goddess of success.

2021 rangoli

Agenda Today:

1. Morning meditation and mantra 

2. Read "The Antidote"

3. Start a new project

4. Make a new rangoli design
5. Add to my altar

Chaitra Navratri

Today is the start of Navratri, a Hindu holiday during which we honor and thank Shakti, the Divine Mother, in all her forms. Shakti is the universal principle of energy and creativity, Mother Earth, and the feminine power in each of us.

The word nava means nine and ratri means nights; the festival lasts for nine nights and ten days. Navratri is celebrated twice each year, in the spring and fall, because these are times when nature and people undergo great changes. Spring (Chaitra) Navratri begins the day after the new moon in late March or early April, and is celebrated as a request to Shakti for a good growing season.

The nine nights of Navratri are broken up into sets of three, and during each a different aspect of Shakti is meditated upon - the Goddesses Durga, then Lakshmi, and then Saraswati. Each of the three goddesses marks a stage of the spiritual journey we all go through: Durga’s strength and energy creates an opening, Lakshmi’s success and fortune nurtures growth, and Saraswati’s wisdom and knowledge leads to enlightenment, happiness, and peace.

Agenda:

2021 Rangoli (with grandson help)

1. Morning meditation and mantra

2. Read "The Book of Doing and Being"

3. Projects for the week

4. Make a rangoli design

5. Plant grain seeds
6. Set up an altar for Mother Nature
7. Make channa sundal (spicy chickpeas)

Third Quarter Moon of Early March

Tonight is the waning Third Quarter moon of March. Today's moon energy is yin - quiet, internal, heart-driven, intentional Being-ness. At this phase we can ease off a bit on actively pursuing goals, slow down, go within, and attend to inner work, renewal, and self-care.

March is a month of actions; it's a relief to take a small breather this week to discern the next steps forward.

Agenda today:

1. Devotions

2. Meditation and Evaluation Journal

3. Ritual for Release and Realignment

4. Monthly journal brainstorm

5. Proaction and reciprocity plans

6. Surrender, rest, recuperate

Overwhelm

I feel overwhelmed, with ideas, projects, emails, and family demands. Today I want to take some time to get clear about immediate priorities, and what I can put on the back burner.

Agenda:

1. Devotions

2. Beingness 

3. Earth Action

4. Read "The Book of Doing and Being"

5. Beginner's mind meditation for worry

6. Teaching brainstorm

7. Projects for the week

Ramadan

Sunset photo by Brayden

Last night was the start of Ramadan, an Islamic holy day that marks the discovery of the Qur’an by the Prophet Muhammad.

Ramadan is a month of blessing. The Islamic calendar is totally lunar, so Ramadan is a few weeks earlier each year, at the sighting of the thin crescent moon, hopefully at sundown tonight. By night, Muslims read the Qur'an, and celebrate the compassion of God with special prayers. 

By day, they give to charities, and observe the discipline of fasting: They eat an early morning meal before the sun rises, then eat and drink nothing until after sundown. The Ramadan fast includes abstinence from falsehood and anger, in words and in deeds.

Even though I don't partake in a fast, I observe Ramadan in this same spirit, renewing my relationship with God, and exercising self-discipline and generosity. I hope to build my empathy for Muslims as they observe their month-long fast.

1. Celestial awareness

2. Read "The Book of Doing and Being"

3. Beginner's mind meditation for Being

4. Projects for the week

5. Celebrate Iftar

Creative Imagining

I'm ready for a creative re-boot!

 Agenda:

1. Generosity practice

2. Read "The Book of Doing and Being"

3. Beginner's mind meditation for my book

4. Pre-K school plans

5. Projects for the week

Mindfulness, Focus, and Choice

Mindfulness is an awareness practice. When I'm feeling anxious, scattered, and ineffective (like I have been), then I can go back to the moment I'm in. Take a deep breath, look around, notice the people, the room, the weather. Touch my heart and notice my feelings in this moment. Just BE for a minute, awake and calm.   

"When I am present centered and mindful rather than in my head (comparing, judging, planning, hoping) time slows down. I am grounded. Living becomes more interesting. I feel my feet as they touch the floor. I notice the sounds, the details, and the nuances. I notice this moment as unique- not part of a pattern, and I feel the inherent joy of being alive."

Agenda:

1. Read "Perspective"
2. Ongo journal

3. Love meditation

Tu B’Shevat

Tu B’Shevat (to b’sch VAHT), the Jewish New Year for Trees, begins tonight at sunset, the evening before the full moon. This is the season in Israel when the earliest-blooming trees start a new fruit-bearing cycle. In contemporary Israel it’s celebrated with tree planting ceremonies and a focus on ecological awareness, and a seder (ceremonial meal) of tree fruits.

Agenda: 

1. Tree of Life meditation

2. Plant a tree

3. Intentions for Earth-Care

4. Share a seder meal

My Birthday for a New Perspective

Today is the start of my 70th year -  and this calls for an acknowledgement and celebration of a real shift in perspective. Aging has brought a natural evolution of my priorities, and a realignment of the perceived importance of all the small traumas of life. I find I am generally happier and less attached to grudges and blue moods. I feel a profound sense of contentment from simply being present with the people I love. 

Agenda:

1. Generosity practice

2. Rite of initiation

3. Read "Find Your Unicorn Space"

4. Beginner's mind for creativity

5. Pre-K school plans

6. Projects for the week

7. Winter nature tray

Distaff Day

Woman with distaff in left hand, and spindle in right hand.

Distaff Day (January7) is named for the stick-like tool that holds fibers while a woman uses a drop spindle to spin thread.

Spinning and weaving were never-ending chores for pre-industrial women; most women and girls would spin thread while also cooking, caring for children, or minding the sheep. Because women were seen always with a distaff in hand, it became the symbol of “women’s work”. 

But during the Christmas season women took a break from spinning. January 7th was the traditional day for women to start back to work, and so was called Distaff Day.

Agenda:
1. Journal queries and spindle meditation

2. Love meditation

3. Read "Present Moment Awareness"

4. Ongo journal

5. Start a fiber project

6. Proaction and reciprocity plans

Epiphany

January 6th is Epiphany, the final day of the Christmas season. This was the day when the three Magi arrived in Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus, and recognized that he would grow up to be a great helper of people.

Epiphany comes from the Greek epiphania, meaning manifestation, or moment of recognition. The Magi had an epiphany - a moment of recognition, when the truth became clear through something simple and striking.

Agenda for today:

1. Epiphany meditation

2. Love meditation

3. Read "Present Moment Awareness"

4. Bake a King's cake and make a crown

Winternights

The Winternights, or Vetrnætr, is a twelve-day festival that begins on a night in mid-October, and marks the end of summer and the start of the winter. The name Vetrnætr (pronounced Vetter-natter) is Old Norse, composed of two words, vetr - meaning winter, and nætr - meaning nights. Vetrnætr is series of feasts and ceremonies (blóts, pronounced bloots) that celebrate the bounty of the harvest, and also honor the Disir, or female ancestor spirits.

2022 ofrenda

Vetrnætr is celebrated by the Ásatrú; Ásatrú is an Icelandic name, taken by the modern-day Norse and Germanic people who worship the old northern gods (such as Thor, Odin, and Frey) and goddesses (such as Freya and Frigg). Though its practice was interrupted, Ásatrú has been reconstructed as closely as possible to the original religion of the Northern European people, based on the surviving historical records. Ásatrú intrigues me, because it would have been the religion of my ancestors.

This month, Winternights festivals are held across Scandinavia, Germany, and New England and are marked by bonfires, tournaments, feasts, and arts and crafts vendors.

Agenda for today:

1. Ongo Journal

2. Set up my ancestor altar (ofrenda)

3. Disir meditation
4. Make more runes

5. Feast and blót

Getting Organized for Action

We had a great Earthcare Action Meeting on Sunday, and generated ton of ideas. As the leader, my next steps are to make a plan, discern and do my parts, and find volunteers for the other bits. 

Agenda:

1. Read "The Earth Keeper's Handbook"

2. Proaction and reciprocity plans

3. Love meditation

Practice Organization

Highly-organized people, like myself, have the mental strength to create solid, motivating core beliefs, which lead to disciplined habits that are based on who we truly are. We keep our priorities front and center and get things done!

When I am disorganized, like I am this week after a trip to the coast followed by illness, I feel vague, distracted, and worried.

Like all habits, organization requires effort and attention, and needs to be built slowly. It’s the little things I do on a daily basis that have an impact on the quality of my life. When I get my system down, and my habits are on track, things go smoothly and I’m more effective at each task because it gets my full focus. Also, I’m more likely to be responsible and keep my commitments, which leads to trusting relationships. I feel good about what I’m doing, and I’m able to focus on what’s in front of me, confident that everything else is in its place.

Monday is my day to reset for the week and get my ducks in a row - make some plans for health and home, and prepare for Grandson fun and for a return to order.

Agenda:
1. Read "The Sweet Spot"

2. Love meditation

3. Organization goals

Third Quarter Moon of July

Today is the third Quarter moon. This waning third quarter moon energy is yin - quiet, internal, heart-driven, intentional Being-ness. At this phase we can ease off a bit on actively pursuing goals, slow down, go within, and attend to inner work, renewal, and self-care. This isn’t a moment for starting new projects but for finishing up old ones, making peace with the past, and preparing for a fresh start at the next new moon.

Agenda Today:

1. 

Read 

"Brainstorm"

2. 

Review my passion plan

3. Five days of passion

4. Meditation and Evaluation Journal

5. Monthly journal brainstorm