Samhain

I've never been a big fan of Hallowe'en, not the macabre aspect anyway; decorations around here tend to lean slightly to the more cutesy side rather than something from a chainsaw massacre scene. But I do find that Hallowe'en offers us a chance to mark a passing of time with gratitude and light. As we put the earth to rest, store our harvests and turn back the clocks, we mark the halfway point from autumn equinox to the winter solstice, known by the Gaelic name of Samhain. We celebrate all that we have received during this last half year, the seemingly brighter half, and prepare with lights aglow for the darker half of the year.

Darkness isn't a bad thing, at least I don't think so. The dark is what allows us to acknowledge what has been lost in the past year without the inhibitions that come from being placed under the eyes of others. We remember and perhaps offer a piece of atonement  for what we have lost and what we have taken with just the smallest of tokens of light but its in the darkest of places that light truly and fully reveals itself.

When I light my pumpkin tonight, I'll be giving thanks for an over abundant tomato harvest, offering atonement for the taking of meat for my family and saying farewell to a certain farm cat who will always have a piece of my heart, which is exactly where the brightest light will shine tonight.



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~Be well friends

and good Samhain