The ubiquitous Lion costume (clockwise: Sarah and Colin... Eric and me: I was a Grandma (ha!)... Julia and Mari). I can't even recall where it came from/how it originated, but I'd be willing to bet money that Mari wore it when she was a kid too.
"As gardeners, we know that seasons and cycles can be our allies. It's no coincidence that the Day of the Dead, Samhain, All Hallows' Eve, Halloween, and All Souls Day all create autumn ritual around honoring that which has passed. Across cultures and generations, the fall of the leaf heralds in a time of letting go, a season of reflection, a process of going back to the root, and a bittersweet holiday for remembering the gifts of our deceased mentors and ancestors. Perhaps even a season to renew and rekindle our own fires." ~ John Forti, The Heirloom Gardener
The healing continues/begins. I stated previously that, after today, I'll be posting weekly instead of daily. It's been equally cathartic and wrenching. Now it's back to living/life in real-time, in a world without Eric. It makes sense that my musings will happen every Tuesday, since that is the day E died.
Tonight we'll go to Sarah's ex's house (it's all very civilized) and trick-or-treat as a Pokemon group: Colin will be Charizard, Sarah Butterfree, Me Oddish, Chico Snorelax, Rob Jigglypuff, Ryan and Meli Pokeman trainers, and 4-month-old Veda Pikachu. Pics to follow, of course.
SONG: Heal Me by Lady Gaga
BOOK: Grief One Day at a Time: 365 Meditations to Help You Heal After Loss by Dr. Alan Wolfelt
POEM(S): Boundaries by Hue Walker
POEM(S): Boundaries by Hue Walker
In Celtic Mythology
This world and the Otherworld
lie alongside each other
nested together
like the layers of driftwood
or of a seashell,
Their boundaries shifting and permeable,
The crossings simple acts for gods and birds
and mythical adventures for humankind.
We guard these entryways with charm and ritual
And shiver at their mention,
whether in fear or in longing.
The worlds are stitched together at the edges,
Dawn, dusk, the first day of winter,
or summer,
or a life,
The edge of the sea, a riverbank,
the horizon,
the mouth of a cave,
or of a grave.
The stitches held by charm and talisman,
and words of power.
And the Borderland of human boundaries...
More familiar,
yet infinitely more mysterious.
The simple boundary of personal space,
The edge of "I" and "other,"
constantly shifting
in size and shape and intensity.
The border of sound and music,
word and poetry,
utility and beauty.
And there is something delightful,
and cherished,
and divine,
In the human heart,
which takes the bone from
a dead bird,
and shapes it into a flute,
and breathes into it,
and creates
a bird's song!
And in this sacred act
knows all there is to know
of crossing boundaries.
Why You Might Be a Witch by Theodora Goss
Because sometimes you dream of flying
the way you used to.
Because the traffic light always changes for you.
Because when you throw the crusts of your sandwich
to sparrows in the public park, they hop close
and closer, until they perch on your finger
and look at you sideways.
Because as you walk down the street,
the wind plays with the hem of your skirt
so it swings dramatically around your ankles.
Because as you walk, determined and sensible,
your shadow is dancing.
Because a lot of people talk to cats
but for you they answer.
Because the sweetgum trees along the sidewalk
love to show you their leaves, sometimes even tossing
them in front of you, yellow veined red,
brown shot with green and yellow,
like children showing off artwork.
Because when you look up,
the moon is always smiling.
Because sometimes darkness closes around you
and you remind yourself that it’s all right,
you’ve worn this cloak before.
Because in winter you acknowledge
that snow is a blanket as well as a shroud,
and we must all sleep sometimes.
Because in spring you can hear the tinkling bell-sounds
that crocuses make, and the deeper gongs of the tulips.
Because the river waves to you in passing,
and you wave back.
Because even the brownstones of this ancient city
look at you with concern: they want to make sure you’re well.
You belong to them as much as they to you.
Because witches know what they are
and if I asked, do you remember?
You would have to confess that yes,
you do.
Samhain by Annie Finch
In the season leaves should love,
since it gives them leave to move
through the wind, towards the ground
they were watching while they hung,
legend says there is a seam
stitching darkness like a name.
Now when dying grasses veil
earth from the sky in one last pale
wave, as autumn dies to bring
winter back, and then the spring,
we who die ourselves can peel
back another kind of veil
that hangs among us like thick smoke.
Tonight at last I feel it shake.
I feel the nights stretching away
thousands long behind the days
till they reach the darkness where
all of me is ancestor.
I move my hand and feel a touch
move with me, and when I brush
my own mind across another,
I am with my mother's mother.
Sure as footsteps in my waiting
self, I find her, and she brings
arms that carry answers for me,
intimate, a waiting bounty.
"Carry me." She leaves this trail
through a shudder of the veil,
and leaves, like amber where she stays,
a gift for her perpetual gaze.
QUOTE(S): "Heal yourself with the light of the sun and the rays of the moon. With the sound of the river and the waterfall. With the swaying of the sea and the fluttering of birds. Heal yourself with mint, neem, and eucalyptus. Sweeten with lavender, rosemary, and chamomile. Hug yourself with the cocoa bean and a hint of cinnamon. Put love in tea instead of sugar and drink it looking at the stars. Heal yourself with the kisses that the wind gives you and the hugs of the rain. Stand strong with your bare feet on the ground and with everything that comes from it. Be smarter every day by listening to your intuition, looking at the world with your forehead. Jump, dance, sing, so that you live happier. Heal yourself, with beautiful love, and always remember... you are the medicine." ~ María Sabina, healer and poet.
"We approach the lunar eclipse in Taurus. Some friendly reminders: less words more feeling. less knowing more dreaming. less thinking more being. less mind more body. less tech more nature. less talking more deep listening." The Wild Matryoshka
"Now is a time to lay down your tools, the symbols of your productivity, and light a fire to honor not only what has been done throughout the past year, but also all that has preceded you - in this life, and in all the lives lived before. Now is a time to make space, in your heart and in your mind, for the stillness and silence of death." ~ Teo Bishop, Samhain: May The Silence Open Your Heart
“In the midst of darkness, light persists.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi
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