SoulTraveler

Samhain is the time of year when the veil between the spirit world and ours is the thinnest. This makes it a good time to communicate with the ancestors. Some people may not have a strong connection to their past family members or a desire to connect with them. However, the concept of ancestors does not have to be limited to a family tree. For some people, ancestors can be the deity they identify most closely with.  Find what works best for you and try this spread in the quiet hours of Samhain. To make this spread part of a ritual or the Samhain ritual itself, I would suggest setting up an altar with black and silver candles which can be scented with vanilla or cinnamon oil. I also like to clear the room with sage prior to any ritual. A black or silver altar cloth, clear quartz crystal and/or onyx stones, a picture of your ancestor or statue of your deity would be a nice addition as well. Animal totems could also be used. I like to use my raven statue. Raven is about

With clouds overhead and more rain today, I am most aware that the promise of Fall is just around the corner. As I savor the last of summer, I await the Fall with eager anticipation. Fall is my favorite season. It's a natural for me since I was born on Mabon. I started putting Summer to rest yesterday, doing some final harvests before I pull my plants. The herbs are still doing well as are my fairy gardens. I hope to bring both of my fairy gardens inside for the winter to put in my garden room. I harvested basil and made a nice pesto to enjoy before we head out to California. so many of the leaves were damaged but I decided to dry them to use for magical purposes. I will do the same with the mint, lemon balm and lemon verbena. Today I have decorated the mantle with leaves, ravens, owls and candle jars. I will add some tiny pumpkins when they are available. My harvest wreath and Celtic knot doormat are out on the front porch. So often in the past I have bypassed

Someone rang my doorbell earlier today. Throwing caution aside I went to answer it. standing there was an older couple who wanted to give me an invitation to an upcoming Jehovah' Witness event. I smiled kindly, thanked them for the invitation and told them to stay cool. I didn't feel any anger or resentment towards them or a need to point out the broom that hangs right by my door and announce to them that I am an earth worshiper. I understand that we will never change another person's spiritual beliefs nor should we attempt to do so since it is really none of our business. If this couple had pressed their views, I would have stood my ground and been very annoyed indeed because along with acceptance, I also believe in standing up for your beliefs if provoked to do so. It feels good to be able to be so sure of your spiritual beliefs that you don't need to mock or condemn others for theirs.  I believe that is living the Buddhist path and I like it!

I read a post this morning from the blog The Bishop in The Grove about the upcoming vernal equinox, known to pagans as Ostara. Traditionally, with the coming of spring and thus with Ostara, we look towards new beginnings, both for mother earth and ourselves. The thought of new beginnings brings to mind all sorts of fun things like perhaps a new relationship, new home, new job, a new place to visit. What intrigued me about Teo Bishop's article was his idea of focusing on the balance aspect of Ostara. As I ran my errands this morning, I couldn't help but reflect on where and how we could restore balance into our lives. Our Nutrition: Many of us are looking to bring our weight or health back into balance and naturally look towards ways we can be achieve this. Perhaps instead of focusing on diets that eliminate whole food groups (vegetarian,paleo, Atkinson, gluten free etc) we should instead look into how are eating habits are unbalanced and how we can bring things

Relationships are the things that ground us and allow us to grow as people. They teach us many things. They teach us to have the courage to admit when we are wrong, to admit when we are scared,  to admit when we are lonely. They teach us the value of truth and of the importance of being ourselves. They teach us the folly of expectations and instead the wisdom of acceptance of another person. It is for these reasons that friendship reigns supreme in the relationship genre. To learn to be a good friend is the basis of a lasting and fulfilling romantic partnership. Entwining ourselves with unhealthy, unstable people will never be a satisfactory experience and will in fact lead a person further down the slippery slope of mental wellness. It is important to look at the people to whom you feel the closest because they are a reflection of yourself and show what it is you value. People who feel that the world revolves around them are the most unattractive people of all. It doesn't tak