We enjoyed the recent full moon during this Moon of Dancing Leaves cycle. Did you catch a glimpse of it? Days feel like they are flying by and I can’t believe it’s already October! There are lots of vibrant reds and yellows here and I’m seeing the landscape changing daily. Definitely savoring this sunshine today! Here is a little glimpse into our morning, and a peek of the newest wee fae addition to the Hollow – Solei Maple! We are sitting under three beautiful red Maples.
I invite you to spend some time with trees and tune into any messages from the leaves!
P.S. Mundimancy is the art of divination that allows us to listen to the anima mundi, or world soul, that speaks to us through a web of signs, symbols, and synchronicities. It is a playful and intuitive way of becoming present and attuned to the dynamic range of sources for divination. We have a whole course on it if you’d like to dive deeper!
Here is a peek into the journal Luna and I have been playing with. We are exploring the animals and insects who visit us everyday. Lots of geese have been stopping by the pond on their way south. The shifting seasons always has me appreciating the little things like a warm sunny day, mist rising on the pond and a hot mug of coffee.
Do you find yourself journaling more in the autumn as you start spending more time indoors?
This was a recent Daily Musing* in the Hollow. The answers ranged from pampering, boundary setting, the desire to do more self-care, and healthy choices to music, play and spiritual pursuits. My own answer came as a meandering path through all the things that felt like opposites (rest/activity, vacation/focus, boundaries/social time) and I realized that for me, self-care is whatever will bring me back into balance.
The last few weeks re-balancing has looked like sleep, soup, kitty snuggles, reading, tv watching, nose-blowing, hot tub, sleep, repeat. As I come out of the haze and my energy picks up, I am realizing the huge contrast between summer self care and what self care looked like in the last few weeks. It’s the perfect example of my answer to the musing on self care—whatever brings me back into balance—and isn’t that what the equinox this week is inviting all of us to do? Let’s do whatever we need to come back into balance just as mother nature does!
Pictured: Willow, aka, Silly Puddy
Back in the summer, self-care looked like our road trip Oregon Coast vacation of beaches, new scenery, lots of time to stare out the window or read, and an amazing exploration of sea caves, including one full of hundreds of sea lions!!! We took an elevator down over 200 feet and were able to view the sea lions (and smell them! whoa!!) in their home. It was sort of the opposite of a zoo in that they were free to come and go, we humans were limited by bars in the walls. Remembering the sea lions reminds me now, as the seasons shift and I’m in a whole different cycle of living, to take great care of my sealskin, to re-calibrate and balance my internal and external worlds.
While hard to see, those little dots in the first couple of photos are hundreds of sea lions sunning themselves just outside their cave. Then, photos from inside the cave are taken much closer to the action! Click on any image in the gallery to enlarge it and arrow through the full gallery. The final photo is from this website to show some context.
You’ve probably heard of Selkie, a shapeshifting sealwoman. Did you know that in the Irish tradition, the Sea Singer is called Celtic Merrow or in Irish, Murúch. Just as the mythical Selkie comes ashore and is unable to return when her sealskin is taken, in the Irish folktale of the Sea Singer, it’s his or her magical cap that is taken and he or she needs it in order to travel between deep water and dry land.
A loss of an essential part of self can become a barrier to fully exploring every terrain at will. In life we willingly give over parts of ourselves for the sake of accomplishments, relationships, and missions that are bigger than ourselves. This is a beautiful aspect of being human.
At the same time, a deep attachment or identification with any aspect of self can also become a barrier. For example, when we don’t take breaks from our day-to-day routines and explore the edges of life, we lose touch with our sense of possibility. In my little family, we’re so very aware of this in our personalities, we absolutely must have periodic adventures throughout the year, even if they are just short day trips.
The coming Autumnal Equinox is the perfect time to tune into the center of balance in our bodies, in our days, and in our relationships. I’m noticing the center of balance in my day to day living and identifying exactly where I feel in or out of equilibrium while viewing all levels of life. I invite you to do the same, take care of your selkie skin which allows you to travel between deep water and dry land…where would you like to bring more balance?
*In Moon Feather Hollow, each day we post a Musing in the Stone Circle. These 365 ✨Daily Musings are designed to take to your journal or craft table, to ponder in your imagination, or to comment on in community.
How is it another full moon and almost September already? So grateful for summer road trip memories as a focal point to steady me as time speeds by at a dizzying pace! I savor the sunny memories in images as my window view shows falling leaves & drizzle here in the Pacific Northwest, where autumn in afoot! I hop you enjoy this little photo gallery of Mt. Shasta – said to be earth’s root chakra, and the mighty redwoods of northern California.
First, I wish to welcome our newest readers to the Musings blog where we get personal. If you have interest in Owls from the Hollow, our newsletter, that focuses on all of the happenings with Moon Feather Hollow, the enchanted imaginal landscape, online community, courses, books and kits! We just published the 2024 Dreamoire of Moonlit Alchemy and have the 2024 Moon Datesart prints available too! If we already have your mailing address, you can expect your 2024 Moon Dates card in September. If we do not have your mailing address, you can create or update your informationhere. When we have your mailing address, we sent you magic mail during your birthday month too!
We enjoyed so many amazing farmer’s markets but the view at Mt. Shasta’s was of course, the best! While in California, we also visited the redwoods, such majestic trees! I wish I’d been taught history with the rings of a tree. Somehow this context made the events (click middle image for dates!) so much more engaging to me.
From our southernmost location of Klamath, CA up the coast back to Seattle is about 600 miles. This was 600 miles of family bonding, beautiful coastal views, teen driving experience, and me not cooking or doing laundry. It was time-blurred days of savoring feet in the sand, splashing in the ocean, sea-scented air, and sunkissed skin.
I’ll be back with another savoring of sea stacks, ocean views, sea lions and more in coming weeks! In the meantime, may this moon in Pisces spark your imagination!
It’s first harvest under a supermoon! I’m still harvesting all of the magical moments from my road trip that began two weeks ago when this moon was new. We drove the freeway from Seattle to Mt. Shasta, then over to Klamath, CA and back up the coast. I’ve so many stories to share that I’m going to fully harvest them slowly… savoring the memories as I convey them and decide which are the best photos to share. Eyefulls of scenic delights fed my soul!
First a funny story: The morning we left, as we were getting organized my husband and I were working out some logistics and as the discussion unfolded, he said, “You’re right.”
I responded, “I don’t care about being right, I just…” and before I could finish the sentence our teen said, “That’s the difference between you two…”
One of us likes to be right and the other just likes to impress people with being clever. 😄 Haha… kids know us better than we realize!
So….hours later…not regular hours, mind you, ROAD TRIP hours, I said to my husband, “You know, after 27 years of marriage we can still get better at really knowing and supporting each other, so I will tell you more often when you are right and make it a point to say so.”
To which he responded, “And I’ll tell you more often how impressive you are because you really are.”
Me: “You’re right!” 🤣😂😆🤣😂
I share this story because I think it set the tone for the whole trip and it is so fitting for a a full moon in Aquarius followed by a new moon in Leo! Our little family unit really “saw” each other. We shared such sweet moments and so many belly laughs!
Now for some scenery… Pictured at the top of the page is a little creek in Ashland, OR. We always end up at the river no matter where we go!
I also find fae wherever I go. This little faerie door is also in Ashland, which we decided was the friendliest place on the whole trip and so very charming! We enjoyed their lovely park pictured below, so many wonderful little shops, and music! There were buskers in the street and violin lessons taking place in the park.
Another stop that first day was Vancouver, Oregon which was having their farmer’s market. I had a couple of amazing conversations with vendors. One lady was telling me about her jewelry and explained that the piece I was looking at (as I heard it ) was “piratized” so I asked about the process. As she went on, I realized she must have said “pyritized” … of course! Doh! Pyrite, not pirate! So I told her what I thought she said. Her puzzled expression showed she did not yet grasp the difference in words … so I covered my eye and said, “Eye, matey!” Oh she laughed and laughed and thanked me. She said she will never be able to say “pyrite” again without thinking of me and having a chuckle!
The other great converstation was with a maker of interlocking rings. He said they come in 3, 7 or the most he had done was 21. He said his favorite were the group of 7 interlocking rings because there was something really satisfying about the artistic balance of it, and went on to share how 7 is a magical number. After he listed the 7 colors, continents and days of the week, I jumped in to say the days were named after the original 7 planets, and continue with more groups of 7. We went on and on back and forth… 7 seas, petals on a lotus, 7 deadly sins, seals, the constellation called 7 sisters… siting magical groups of 7 for a long time as customers gathered around… it was a wonderful magical moment!
I’ll be back with another dose of road trip revelry soon. Today, may you feel a celebratory vibe of the full moon and the Aquarius vibe of eccentricity.
There’s a paradox in Aquarius and its theme of authenticity to self and alignment with others. We have to manage the tension between belonging to self and belonging to something bigger than ourselves. In expressing your most unique self and thus realizing everyone’s special so then is anyone special? Aquarius is both the sign of the occasionally eccentric individualist AND the community-focused humanitarian. There’s an almost transcendent experience of “Aquarius” when you’re gathering with a truly diverse and multi-dimensional friendship group and/or community and you’re cultivating a meaningful connection. That’s Aquarius.
You can expect better photos as the road trip progresses, I promise. 🤣
My 15 year old kiddo is at the wheel, hubby navigating, and I am enjoying the sun roof from the back seat where I will be blogging our west coast adventure.
This week I am focused on my heart, and sharing from my heart. The sun is in watery cancer, so emotional themes and nurturing are present. As July continues to unfold and the sun moves into firey Leo, it’s a natural time to focus on our hearts.
Vacation technically began Friday night. We went to a concert at a venue called “El Corazon” which is Spanish for “the heart.”
It has an eclectic vibe…
The band that drew us here is called Weathers. The lead singer has such great stage presence and charisma. I was so happy to witness him give my kiddo (who was front stage) a high five!! I sang along and danced to favorite songs and felt like a teen myself.
The venue was small and the crowd so participatory, we really had a collective effervescence. It was the perfect way to shift into vacation vibe.
May this find you feeling nurtured, embracing your favorite summer experiences, and listening to your heart.
