Wheel of the Year
Samhain - 31st October

Samhain - ‘Summers End’

 

The Wheel of the Year goes back to a time when life was celebrated as a multidimensional interconnected web.  The Earth was respected and seen as a fertile life-force.

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The Wheel of the Year begins and ends at Samhain (31st October- 1st November).

 

Samhain (pronounced Sow-ein)  marks the cross quarter midpoint between the Autumnal Equinox and Winter Solstice here in the Northern Hemisphere.  The beginning of the dark half of the year.  Autumn is at its height, the trees red and gold, shedding their leaves and seeds.  The orchards have given up their fruit for the year.   Mushrooms begin to appear overnight.  Notice their magical connection to trees. The trees take their sap deep down into their roots, resting till Spring.

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Samhain is a time of year for slowing down and reflection.  Letting go. Celebrating the end of the Earth’s yearly cycle. Some animals hibernate and the land rests. The harvest has finished, food for the cold months collected, prepared and stored.  Welcoming the dark days, shifting focus from doing to contemplating.  The shadows emerge from their corners, Samhain is upon us.

 

Other celebrations around the world at this time of year acknowledge our ancestors, death, the soul and transition.  Halloween, Dia de los Muertos and All Soul’s Day.

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A time to connect with our ancestors.  We are reminded of our own mortality.  Death being a part of the natural cycles of nature, after death comes rebirth.

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Think about these ideas when you head out on your first #seasonsketchers. Notice the things around you that are particular to that point in time where you live.

 

Here in the Northern Hemisphere:  Fallen leaves, fruits and seeds.  Rot and decay, giving life to colourful Fungi.  Windfall friut waiting for bird visitors. Are there any flowers still in bloom?.  Use all of your senses.  What does the weather smell and feel like? 

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Would you like to know more about how you can use the Wheel of the Year and Nature Journaling to connect deeper with nature where you live?  Why not join my

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