You know how in modern life, we're taught that we always have to be productive every single hour we're awake, that you can sleep when you're dead? Yeah, I sometimes have that mindset. Lately though, my Ancestors have been urging me to take a break before I break down. I have a hard time listening to my elders though.
Now I have the flu for the first time ever in my life. Employee Health at the hospital where I work as a phlebotomist sent me home before I even had a chance to clock in yesterday, telling me the earliest I could come back is Thursday. Should've taken a break, huh? Not that my Ancestors conjured up the flu just for me - it's an occupational hazard and I'm grateful it's not Covid - but the warning was that I was letting my immune system get weakened by all the running I've been doing and I didn't listen to the whispers, or to my body. Now I'm forced into some downtime and the nagging voice of productivity is ringing in my ears. I do have a few projects that I can work on slowly, there's no deadline for completing them but I would love nothing more than to get them out of my work basket and into the homes I've chosen for them, so I'll work on those as I feel like it.
I had also intended to reset my Ancestral altar, but kept myself so busy that I just never got around to it. I'll work on that today since Samhain was yesterday. I was intending to film that reset to share with you, but once again, best intentions. I did find a video I made back in the spring about resetting and reconsecrating this particular altar, so I'm sharing that one with you and then later today I will share a photo of what the altar looks like now.
Let's talk Samhain & Dia de los Meurtos
A lot of witches talk about Samhain marking the point in the Wheel of the Year when the veil between the worlds is the thinnest, and I guess you could say that. For me, however, Samhain marks the time of year when the veil between us and our Ancestors begins to thin. We've entered the dark half of the year, a time when we can see and hear the liminal better. The time of year when the earth herself is starting to go to sleep. For me, this is the time of year when I want to hibernate, to turn inward and reflect on the year just past. Samhain marks the start of a new year for me, a time to germinate new ideas and projects, to plan gardens, but not take physical action because the ground for those things hasn't had time to rest and regenerate properly.
This is the time of year when our ancestors drawn close, when we need to honor them, feed them and acknowledge their presence in our lives, because, honestly, we wouldn't be here without them.
October 31st is also the beginning of Dia de los Muertos celebrations. It emerged from an Aztec ritual known as Miccaihuitl, and Miccaihuitl was an honoring of the dead. The arrival of the conquistadors and Catholicism, which had their own celebrations that they tried to syncretize with traditional Indigenous ceremonies, Día de los Muertos today is the bringing together of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day with this traditional honoring of our ancestors. According to tradition, the gates of Heaven are opened at midnight on October 31st and the spirits of children can rejoin their families for 24 hours. The spirits of adults can do the same on November 2nd.
Whichever way you celebrate this time of year, remember to slow down and enjoy the dark half of the year. Without darkness, there is no light. Without rest there is no growth.
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