Mabon/Autumn Equinox

This year the Autumn Equinox happens tomorrow, the 22nd. Mabon, as the Autumn Equinox is called, is a word from modern Pagan folklore, thought to be named after the Welsh god of mythology. It's a turning point in the wheel of the year and means Autumn is really here.

One old weather saying says.............

 A quiet week before the autumn equinox and after, the temperature will continue higher than usual into winter.

Ways to celebrate Mabon according to a website (you can tell by the missing letter 'U' in some words that it was a website from the US!)

1. Create an Altar:  Set up a Mabon altar with symbols of the season. This can include autumn leaves, acorns, pinecones, candles in fall colors, and representations of the harvest like fruits and vegetables.

2. Harvest Feast:  Prepare a feast using seasonal ingredients like apples, pumpkins, squash, and root vegetables. Share the meal with friends or family, expressing gratitude for the abundance of the harvest.

3. Nature Walk:  Take a walk in nature to observe the changing colors of the leaves and connect with the energy of the season. Collect fallen leaves, acorns, or other natural items to use in your rituals or altar.

4. Rituals and Ceremonies:  Perform rituals to honor the changing season. This can involve meditation, candle lighting, and expressing gratitude for the abundance in your life. Consider incorporating elements like water, fire, earth, and air to represent balance.

5. Divination:  Use divination tools such as tarot cards, runes, or scrying to gain insights into the coming season. Focus on themes of reflection, balance, and transitions

6. Crafts and DIY Projects:  Engage in creative projects that connect with the season. Make autumn-themed crafts, create a wreath, or decorate your home with symbols of Mabon.

7. Bonfire or Fire Pit Gathering:  If possible and safe, gather around a bonfire or fire pit. Fire is a symbol of transformation and can be used for rituals, storytelling, or just enjoying the warmth of the season.

8. Gratitude Journaling:  Take time to reflect on the things you're grateful for. Start a gratitude journal and write down the positive aspects of your life and the blessings you've received.

9. Feeding Wildlife:  Since Mabon is a harvest festival, consider sharing a bit of your harvest with local wildlife. Leave out birdseed or set up a bird feeder to attract birds to your yard.

10. Visit an Orchard or Farm:  Spend a day at an orchard or farm, picking apples or other seasonal fruits. Enjoy the experience of being close to the land and appreciate the hard work of those who cultivate it.

 

I hadn't thought about my seasonal display being an altar! but as soon as I put the room back together I'll be getting the Autumn bits out of the cupboard. 

Then I could bring in the first Butternut squash and cook up something and I need to walk up the lane for the September following a tree photos ASAP. That's numbers 1, 2 and 3 taken care of.

Not sure about rituals and divination? but I looked up 'Autumn Wreath Making Workshops in Suffolk' and there are a couple happening at  £65 for the experience - so I'll pass on that!

Not a good idea to have  bonfires here in my village garden - so that won't be happening and the only journaling I'll be doing is here on the blog.

I've started bird feeding again and not had an invasion of starlings - so that's good and for number 10 my Falstaff apples are almost ready - there are about a dozen decent sized apples to enjoy and lots of smaller ones. I checked their proper ripening time and it's early October but we've had plenty of sunshine so I'll be trying them this weekend.

Mabon Sorted!

Back Soon 

Sue

September Days

 The 1st of the month.... I'm a day late............. marks the start of meteorological autumn, astronomically Autumn doesn't begin until Mabon or the  Autumn Equinox which is on the 22nd this year................... So you choose.

There are old traditions about the most frequent weather patterns for September which tell of three periods of "Old-wives Summer", each are followed by stormy days. The dry spells were said to occur about the 7th - 10th, 16th to 21st and around the 30th as anti-cyclones move east across the UK. The most common time for gales was around the 24th. I wonder if things are still the same in 2024?

The Golden Rod is yellow

The Corn is turning brown

The trees in apple orchards

With fruit are bending down

The gentian's bluest fringes

Are curling in the sun

In dusty pods the milkweed

It's hidden silk has spun

The sedges flaunt their harvest

In every meadow nook

And asters by the brook-side

Make asters in the brook

From dewy lanes at morning

The grapes sweet odours rise

At noon the roads all flutter 

With yellow butterflies

By all these lovely tokens

September days are here

With summer's best of weather

And autumns best of cheer

But none of all this beauty

Which floods the earth and air

Is unto me the secret

Which makes September fair.

T'is a thing which I remember

To name it thrills me yet

One day of one September

I never can forget.

Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885)

September dries up wells or breaks down bridges

                                             

 September rain is much liked by  the farmer

Many haws and many sloes make many cold toes.

September 2nd 1666 was the day the the Great Fire of London started . It burned for 3 days and nights, destroying the Cathedral, the Royal Exchange, about 100 parish churches, many public buildings and more than 10,000  homes. Yet the death toll was much lower than the 75,000 that died during the Great Plague of the previous two years.

When the city was rebuilt roads were straightened, timber homes were replaced with brick and Sir Christopher Wren's designs were used for St Paul's Cathedral, 50 churches and the Monument - to remember those that died.

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Monument to the Great Fire of London story 2 of 4

Back Soon

Sue

Mabon

 Looking through books about old weather lore you won't find the word Mabon anywhere as Mabon is the name of the modern Pagan festival celebrating the Autumn Equinox, which this year happens at 7.49am tomorrow morning. It is the midpoint of one quarter of the Wheel of The Year.

The equinox marked the end of all the harvesting and the end of the years cycle and is the beginning of astrological Autumn.

One of the things suggested for modern pagans to do is to draw a circle on the ground, marking it's boundary with natural things. Split the circle into eight segments representing each part of the year that has just finished and put  suitable things in each segment to mark your own year. Walk around the outside of the circle and meditate on the year passed and that which is to come.

There are many old  weather sayings for yesterday which was St Matthew's Day but I did a whole post about him two years ago so won't repeat those this year. However I found one prediction  centred on the equinox which said.........

A quiet week before the autumn equinox and after, the temperature will continue higher than usual into winter.

It wasn't a quiet week here - very wild and windy on Tuesday and Wednesday, thankfully not as much rain as other parts of the country and still not too chilly. I found the radiators warm one morning when it must have been really chilly at 6.30 but that was the only time the heating has come on. I got round to dipping the oil tank and the watchman is correct as it's still half full - surprisingly.. The boiler juice company are recommending filling up heating oil tanks now rather than later as prices are rising again, so I may well do that soon. Apparently we now also have another few years to change from heating oil to an electric based heating system.

Back Tomorrow

Sue

Putting Autumn Back on the Mantelpiece

 Summer wasn't very exciting on my living room mantelpiece, which doesn't really matter as most of my time is hopefully spent outside. 

 

 But when Autumn arrives it's all change. With today being the traditional first day of Autumn, the equinox or Mabon,  it was time to pull out the box  from under the stairs and cheer things up as we head to shorter days.

 

My Hare stays there all year (A hare-for-all-seasons!) and this is the fourth autumn for the leaf swag, jug and wooden fruit, the second year for the mushroom cluster and the first year for the 2 wooden mushrooms, sent to me from my penfriend. I've added a little "Happiness is Home made" plate this year for a change - it usually sits on the dresser - might need to stick it to the wall with a bit of blue-tac as I don't possess a plate stand thingy of any sort. The mantelpiece has cheered things up for a few weeks, and bats and pumpkin will be added for Halloween. 

Speaking of Bats........... anyone know how a cat catches a bat? Have you ever seen it happen? I ask because on Sunday night Polly came through the cat flap in a rush, always a bad sign! Luckily the door into the conservatory was open and that's where she took her catch, which I assumed was a mouse. But when I went to investigate I found a bat flitting about desperately looking for a way out. I quickly opened the outside door and went back into the living room shutting the door behind me and it must have found it's way back out into the dark - probably in a state of shock. 

This is the second time my small black cat has brought a bat indoors and I have no idea how she does it, how does a bat with its built in radar get caught by a wimp of a cat.

 Back Tomorrow

Sue

And a PS - hello and welcome to some more new followers, just noticed numbers have reached 630. If you've just found me I hope you enjoy reading.

Pulling Autumn Out Of The Cupboard

Mabon, as the Autumn Equinox is called in Pagan folklore, thought to be named after the Welsh god of mythology is a turning point in the wheel of the year and Autumn is really here so  I hauled my box of odds and ends out of the cupboard under the stairs, fished out Autumn and put Summer away until next year.

Illustration from "Ceremonies of the Seasons" by Jennifer Cole.

Having been without a  mantel shelf for many years at Fareacre it was during our first Autumn here in 2017 that I  found some things to make the room a just little bit different for a few months. Now it's become a regular thing.  BiL is having a woodburner installed in his house and he said it's no longer permitted to have a wooden mantel shelf......... "elf and safety". Ho Hum

So Autumn on my mantel shelf  and it isn't much different to 2017 and 2018.

My Hare stays through all the seasons and this is the third autumn for the leaf swag, fir-cone, pottery acorn, jug and wooden fruit and the new addition of the wooden mushroom.
I think it cheers things up for a few weeks, bats and pumpkin will be added for Halloween. Need to keep my eyes open for a few different bits for winter.......second-hand of course.

It was only after I'd put everything out that I remembered the chimney sweep will be coming in a couple of weeks and I'll have to take it all off again!

Back Tomorrow
Sue