Use in spell baths and rituals associated with communication with spirits or purification (depending on the intent)
Eat to invoke lust and passion
If you are in love, cutting parsley will result in bad luck regarding your love
Many feel parsley has evil connotations
Wear for protection
A parsley infusion can be used as a hair rinse to prevent lice. The oil can be used to treat infestations.
Poultices of parsley can be used for insect bites or make an ointment out of the oil. A compress of cooled parsley tea soothes swelling and puffiness.
WARNINGS:
Pregnant women should not eat large quantities of parsley.
Large amounts of parsley can have toxic effects on the liver, lungs, and kidneys.
Parsley oil is toxic if consumed
Use care if collecting parsley wild. Fool’s parsley looks a great deal like the real thing but the leaves are more acute, darker green and don’t smell as nice. It is quite poisonous, though it has its own uses.
Behold! My stack of “featured” reads, which resides in the living room of my home. These titles were all chosen specifically for the arrival of 💫 Sagittarius season! ♐️ Did you know? Jane Austen and Louisa May Alcott were both Sagittarians.
The Full Moon this month falls on April 26th-27th.
It occurs in the sign of Scorpio.
It is a Perigee-Syzygy (Super Moon).
Get your personalized Full Moon Tarot Reading -- click here.
Scorpio is the sign of evolution and transformation. The moon in this sign will amplify your emotions in a controlled manner which allows you to analyze them and learn about how to manage them. You will likely feel very deep--the shallows will no longer satisfy. The Scorpion stings you with a yearning for human connection on a level which you have not achieved in some time.
It is Spring! Things are blooming, I am sneezing, there are birds absolutely everywhere... how exciting. For centuries, this full moon has marked the final melting of the last frost, signaled the flowing of thawed rivers, and celebrated the pops of color and life that have returned to the Earth. Violets, Crocuses, Hyacinth, Daffodils, and Forsythia are exploding from lush, green, newborn grass and the Dandelions are beginning to join them.
The seeds I planted at Ostara are thriving now. I've moved them from inside the house to my front porch and back inside again... We got snow the other day. Michigan. Gotta love her. Anyhow, it seems that the last frost is over and I'm safe to move the babies back out to the front porch for a week before Beltane arrives and I must move them outdoors into the garden! But let's not get ahead of ourselves.
Before we can rejoice beside the Bel Fire, we must... clean.
My yard is !a mess! and the garden beds need weeding before I can hope to grow any flowers in them. There are some branches in the yard and by the street that need to be trimmed (an excuse to use my machete for the first time this year). And I need to prepare a plot to plant my veggie garden! Not to mention finishing up the closets, cupboards, corners, and cabinets that still need to be cleaned and organize inside the house.
Spring cleaning needs to happen in your sacred space, too. Throw out old herbs, bury/burn old spell materials, clean out jars for collecting new items... Then go on a nice long walk through the woods to replenish your stock! Gather rainwater and leave it under the beams of this powerful full moon to make a fresh batch of moon water. Maybe you have a basket of tarot decks that needs to be organized or a book full of notes and spells to sort through or a pouch of rocks to clean. You might have books to tidy on shelves or burn marks on your altar table to sand off. Whatever it is, now is the best time to do it.
Use this moon's energy in your magic and you're sure to see success. Money magic and intention setting spells will be particularly potent when cast under this moon. A ritual for drawing down the moon would prove beneficial as well. Whatever you decide to do, have trust in your magic and in the moon. Release your fears. Trust in the flow of the universe--it has some ideas for you.
If you'd like a Full Moon Tarot Reading, Click Here.
The Worm Moon will be full this weekend in Libra, opposite the Aries Sun.
What is this strange energy?
The Libra Moon encourages you to focus on your relationships, whether it be the romantic ones, familial ones, or your friendships. In its position opposite the Aries Sun, which represents self assertion, the Libra Moon may just push you to open up about all the things you’ve been quiet about for so long.
Expect heightened emotions, weird drama, and relationship conflict; be ready to explore your inner needs and find a way to balance meeting them with attending to others; prepare yourself for epiphanies and realizations about yourself, your relationships, your independence, etc.
This diplomatic Moon focuses on balance, emotional maintenance, grace, negotiation, and compromise. A boost of self-confidence, courage, and assertiveness from the Aries Moon will allow you to speak up and ask for exactly what it is you want, or to just reach out and take it.
A Tarot Spread for the Full Moon in Libra
1. You, now.
2. What area of life has lost Balance.
3. How to re-create that Balance.
4. What’s trying to weigh you down.
5. What’s trying to lift you up.
6. What you need: partnership or independence.
Ostara is probably my favorite sabbat. It marks the Spring Equinox and the Rebirth of the Earth. We light our candles and bid farewell to the winter spirits as we welcome the lengthening of the days and the return of the sun. Persephone returns from the underworld, allowing the Earth to bloom.
Ostara is a time for spring cleaning, both in your home and in your soul. Go through your closet and throw out all those clothes you haven’t worn in a year; dump that shoe box full of old love letters and birthday cards into a bon fire; clean out the corners and drawers that have accumulated junk over the past year; freshen up your house with a new coat of paint; give up a nasty habit or set intentions to change your mindset. You get the point. Cleanse yourself and your surroundings of the old to make room for the new. Allow for total rebirth.
This sabbat can be celebrated in many different ways, but if you want to know a little more about how I like to recognize Ostara, keep reading…
Welcoming Persephone
To welcome Persephone, light candles in the windows to guide her back from the Underworld. She is on her way home to begin the making of the flowers, so maybe you could give her a hand with that, too. Plant flowers or make flowers out of paper, wood, etc. and decorate your altar with them, along with other offerings. You can say a prayer or recite a poem in her honor, too; Click Here for some examples, or make up one of your own.
Other Deities
Demeter, mother of Persephone, Goddess of agriculture and fertility.
Aphrodite, Goddess of beauty, love, procreation, and sex.
Adonis, God of renewal and beauty.
Pan, God of the wild and nature.
Cernunnos; the Horned God, the Green Man, the Master of wild things and places.
(Click Here to learn more about this mysterious deity)
Altar
Colors for Ostara are green and gold, as well as peach, pink, and yellow; the colors of sunrise and springtime growth. Scales can be used to represent balance, as Ostara marks the equinox when day and night are equal. Other symbols to incorporate in your altar or home décor this sabbat season are eggs, especially painted ones, figures of rabbits, ducks, goats, and baby animals, and flowers such as daffodils, crocus, tulips, and clover. One thing you will always find on my Ostara altar? A little dish full of salt with a bay leaf sticking out of it, to symbolize growth through the winter snow.
Food
Along with placing foods on your altar as an offering to Persephone, or whatever deity you choose, having a family feast can be an Ostara celebration in itself. Gather the family together to cook and set the table and eat as a unit; spend time during or after the meal to talk about what you will leave behind and let melt away with the winter season and what you look forward to planting and nurturing in the coming months.
Hard-Boiled Eggs
Honey
Asparagus
Sprouted Greens
Lamb
Baked Goods
Honey Cakes, Lemon-Poppy Seed Muffins, and Hot Cross Buns!
Crafts & Activities
Go for a nature walk; see what you can find already growing or what lasted through the winter. Collect and forage, if you can find anything useful for crafting or casting.
Have a tea party; outdoors, if the weather will allow it. Take the opportunity to dress up and be fancy with your friends or kids, be playful, let loose, shake off those winter blues.
Earth Clean-Up; take some time to clean up the Earth, even if it’s just your own yard.
Garden Cleaning; this is part of spring cleaning, but you must prep your garden for a fresh spring and summer of fruitfulness.
Plant Seeds & Intentions; plant what needs to be planted early, indoors if you have to, and plant your intentions along with those seeds. It’s a great time to start growing herbs, too.
Egg Decorating & Egg Hunts; the craft part is the coloring of the eggs, then once you’ve done that, make an activity out of it and have an egg hunt.
Craft a Basket; another symbol of Ostara. You can make them out of reeds or rushes, pipe cleaners, straws, paper/cardboard, whatever you can find.
Craft a Flower Crown; wear it on your head as you honor Persephone and welcome her home, or just to run around outside and enjoy the sunshine.
Divination; whether you’re a practicing witch or not, the equinox is the best time for divination or communicating/connecting with the other side, as the veil between this world and that of the dead is thin. Tarot, tea leaf reading, palm reading, rune casting, and pendulum dowsing are just a few divination activities to try for Ostara.
Ostara Tarot Spread
This spread is designed to help you identify which areas of your life need nurturing and pruning, much like your house plants.
Moving forward. Anyone else still feel like they can’t quite shake the “ick” of the past year? Now is the time to really let it all go, to see it for what it was, and to move forward with a new hope and a new perspective.
Picking up the New Year’s resolutions that you’ve let fall off. I’m not afraid to admit that I’m guilty of it. I started off this year with a strong daily routine, exercise, healthy food, meal prepping... What happened? I need to adjust and get back on that horse.
Expressing yourself. If this past year has taught us anything, it’s that life is too short. Don’t hold back, don’t be afraid to go for what you want and be who you are. You only get one life, make what you want of it. Leave your own unique mark on this world.
Tapping into your creative side. This is a great time to do something artistic or crafty, or even just to make time to enjoy the arts. Visit a museum to dazzle at works of the greats or create a gallery of your own.
Sharing your dreams. Don’t keep those big dreams bottled up inside. Tell your friends about those ‘silent moves’ you’ve been making. Share your new relationship with your family. Go all in. Let people see you.
Meditating and reflecting. See yourself clearly; who you are, who you were, who you want to be. Empty everything from your mind and get a clear perspective on the world around you. Refresh your sight. Cleanse your aura. Reset and find your center.
Healing. Forgive yourself, forgive others, and tend to your wounds. Be kind to yourself, be gracious; do not allow the traumas of your past continue to harm you as you move forward into a more honest, enlightened future.
Embracing fantasy and mysticism. Something about springtime is just so magical, isn’t it? The spirit of rebirth, new life springing up all around you, the long-awaited warmth of the fun on your skin, the twittering of birds and skittering of squirrels. Close your eyes, or look just past your back yard, and allow your imagination to wander. Welcome the spirit of fantasy and adventure. Embody Alice and follow that rabbit in the waistcoat.
New Moon in Pisces Tarot Spreads
Keep reading for two tarot spreads to utilize during this moon phase...
Broken Promises Tarot Spread
What promises have I made to myself that I have not followed through on?
How can I reconnect with these goals, dreams, or ideas?
What threw me off track last time? What do I need to be on the look-out for this time around?
It’s Pisces season, and the Full Moon is in Virgo.
Now is a time when emotions are high, but this moon in the analytical, practical sign of Virgo helps to tame that frantic emotional energy. The Virgo Full Moon offers us the ability to think critically and illuminates the areas of our relationships, emotions, and daily routines that need correcting. During the *ahem* passionate Pisces season, we may find ourselves digging really, really deep over the next few weeks. Remember that, at some point, you’ve got to stop digging. Sometimes you have to let go.
How to Use the Energy of this Full Moon:
Make a point to let go of anything bad, toxic, or unhealthy in your life, internal or external. Some negativity can be harder to purge than others. Now is the ideal time (with the vernal equinox looming) to do some spring cleaning, both in your home and in your heart. Throw out that old sweater that constantly reminds you of your ex. Quit smoking. Dump out that bottle of whiskey that taunts you from the freezer every morning at 9am. Look inward and find the habits or inner thoughts that no longer serve you; get rid of them.
A Clearing and Cleansing Ritual:
(This is a fun one to do with kids!)
You will just need some paper, a pen or pencil, and some fire. A candle with a fire-safe bowl nearby if you can safely burn paper indoors, or a fireplace, or a bon-fire. This is the perfect excuse to have a winter bon fire, in my opinion.
Simply sit around the flame and take some time to write down everything you want to leave behind. Imagine that the full moon is a train, come along to take your pain, your past traumas, your negative energy, and carry it away from you.
Once you’ve written everything down, fold the paper three times and toss it into the fire. If you’re feeling particularly aggressive or frustrated, you can also crumple the paper into a small ball to add a heightened energy of force and dedication to this cleansing ritual. Watch the flames and the embers, then watch the smoke as it carries your troubles up to the moon for transport.
After a ritual like this, I like to take a cleansing bath or shower and go straight to bed. In the morning, take a moment to light a candle and clear your head, remind yourself of the previous night’s ritual. Re-dedicate yourself to the mission of ‘letting go’ every morning until you don’t have to anymore.
The Aquarian Energies: Open-Minded Innovation. New Ideas and Opportunities to Expand our Natural Creativity. Stubbornness.
How to Use it: The new moon in Aquarius gives you the opportunity to slow down and let the world come to you. You’ve been fighting hard, working toward something, and now you must rest before you reach the breaking point. Take a step back from your endeavors and look at your progress. Be proud of how far you’ve come, and saddle up to keep moving forward.
What Will be Tested: You friendships and connections. You ability to pick up and go with an idea, taking it to fruition. New plans, projects, unions, etc. Most importantly, your inner emotional stew will be taste tested by this moon as well. And if the moon doesn’t like how things taste, she won’t be afraid to add some spice--whether you want her to or not.
Tarot Spread
1. You, Now.
2. The Freedom you Crave
3. And How to Find it.
4. The Opportunities Ahead
5. And How to Take Advantage of Them.
6. The Pitcher that Needs Emptying. (what to release)
7. The Empty Pitcher that Needs Filling. (what to manifest)
We are half way between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox.
Now is a time to honor the Goddess of the season; Brighid, Goddess of healing, poetry, craft, flame, hearth & home, fertility, rebirth, and the sun.
Think on rebirth, newness, growth, renewal. Remember that the cold season will end and the sunlight will soon begin to reach out and thaw us.
This is the perfect time to begin your spring cleaning, both in your home and your heart. Cleanse your soul of the past year and open yourself to newness. This is the awakening turn of the wheel.
There are many ways to recognize and celebrate Imbolc from crafting to cleaning. Keep reading if you want to know more!
Altar
Your altar doesn’t have to be like everyone else’s. That’s the most important thing I want you to understand; No matter what the sabbat, your altar can be whatever, wherever, however you want it. It doesn’t have to face a certain direction, it doesn’t have to be covered in some woven cloth, and it definitely does not have to be adorned in fancy statues and figures and stones and candles. You do not have to go spend your paycheck at your local metaphysical shop to decorate your altar, I promise. (But if you want a tip about finding affordable “witchy” supplies, I get most of my stuff at the dollar store, Goodwill, and TJ Maxxx.)
For Imbolc, here are some ideas of things you can put on your altar or around your home to honor Brighid and celebrate the sabbat.
* Snow Drops (or any white flower)
* Swan feathers
* Candles in White, Green, and Silver
* Anything White, Green, and Silver
* Figures/Symbols: Serpent, Sheep, Brighid’s Cross, Bridey Doll.
* Food & Drink Offerings: Blackberries, Ginger Tea.
Crafts
* Brighid’s Cross. I make them with my daughter with pipe cleaners every year, but they’re traditionally made with rushes. Rushes are basically dune grass, which I do have access to, but if there’s one thing I don’t do, it’s go outdoors voluntarily in this bitter Michigan cold. No, thank you.
* Bridey Doll. Super simple; just cut a roughly human shape out of two layers of fabric, sew the edges and stuff with fluff. Then you can sew or draw or paint a face on, make some clothes if you want, hair, etc. Boom, Bridey Doll.
* Make a Wand or Besom. Any sabbat is a good time to make a new wand or besom to use in spell work or display on your altar. Use Rowan or Willow branches if you want to stick with the theme of the season.
Activities
* Plant Seeds. I am going to plant my herb seeds and whatever else needs to be planted early and can be started inside. I have big plans for my garden this year and I’m very excited!
* Bake. Something, anything really. It doesn’t matter.
* Go Foraging. Collect whatever you can find. As I mentioned before, I don’t do the cold, but if you do, its a great time to go out in nature and see what’s still living, what’s died, and what’s already trying to come back to life.
* Spring Cleaning. Throw it away. Just get rid of it. You don’t need it. What is it? I don’t know, but you’ve got something, I know it. Toss it.
TAROT SPREAD
1. Seeds to plant for the coming year.
2. Where to focus your fire moving forward.
3. What dormant gift will reawaken within you.
4. What darkness to leave behind.
5. A message from the Goddess.
This morning, I wanted to pull a card for the weekend but three cards fell out of the deck and laid themselves in order as I was shuffling. It was something I could not ignore, so I chose to stop shuffling and interpret the cards that had fallen.
The first was the Eight of Swords, which signifies rapid movement, quick change, and action. Things are moving quickly right now and it’s best to just go with the flow, move forward in your ventures and don’t look back. The obstacles have been cleared and you are free to pursue your goal. Stay focused and get out there, grab what you want and need, don’t hesitate.
The second card was the Five of Swords, the card of disagreement and conflict. This card represents tension and competition. You are in the midst of fighting some final obstacle that has been standing in the way of your goal. Transformation and change are coming (and rapidly) so prepare yourself to take it as it comes and do not fight it. Evolution is necessary and inevitable, accept it and grow in yourself gladly.
The third card was The Devil, reversed. In his reversed position, The Devil indicates a sense of detachment or exploring your ‘shadow self.’ You are likely on the verge of a breakthrough and need to kill one last darling before you can truly ascend. Free yourself from the fears and weaknesses that bind you and allow for this change to take over. Let go and let grow.
It’s the last day of 2020! I don’t think I have ever been so excited for a year to end. I know that, in reality, the changing of a date does not change anything about the state of the world. However, I also know that the symbolic significance of the turning of the wheel and the passing of another year is much more powerful than people want to believe these days.
To get a glimpse into the coming year, I used this spread which I found somewhere on the internet quite some time ago. Keep reading to see what I learned...
It looks like my year is going to be successful in terms of finances and personal success, and that is really exciting for me. I feel like a reading like this has been a long time coming. This year has been really difficult and dark, and it’s exciting to see that there is sunlight on the horizon. This year, I will focus on working hard, sticking to my plans, making and reaching small goals, and keeping myself productive. More specifically, I’m trying to work out and be healthier this year, focus more on my home, career, and family, and take better care of my body, mind, and soul. Good luck to you all in your New Year Transitions.
Saturnalia 2020, pt. 6 -- The Tradition of Role Reversal
One of the most prominent traditions of Saturnalia is that of role reversal. Back in the day, Kings and Queens would abandon their crowns for servants garb and the servants would act as rulers for a day. It was always good fun and kept spirits high around the holidays, giving those less fortunate a chance to live like a King for a day, literally.
Now, most of us don’t have servants and a role reversal would be strange with your weekend cleaning lady, your bus driver, or your Shipt shopper. Instead, I propose a new kind of role reversal that can be done any day around the holiday season; switch roles with your kids! (If you don’t have kids, switch roles with your partner, roommate, sibling, etc.)
I think role-switching with kids gets easier and much more entertaining the older they get. Younger kids can be allotted a few hours in which they get to act like the parent. Older kids and teenagers can have a whole day to switch roles with mom or dad and then the parents get the opportunity to do great impressions of their children.
If this doesn’t sound like it’s for you, that’s fine. These traditions aren’t for everyone! But if this sounds like something you and your family would enjoy and have fun with, give it a go in Saturn’s name. People have been doing it for centuries; since long before the supposed birth of Jesus Christ.
This year, I’m going to allow our kids a few hours one day in which they get to be the parents and my partner and I will act like them. I think it’s going to be a blast. Let me know if you try this out and if it works or not. :)
· a leathery-leaved parasitic plant which grows on apple, oak, and other broadleaf trees and bears white glutinous berries in winter.
But why do we kiss underneath it during Christmastime?
Aside from mistletoe being a symbol of fertility, there is a Norse myth that goes along with Mistletoe and the affectionate holiday tradition attached to it. If you’ve never heard the story of the Death of Baldur, keep reading...
Mistletoe and the Death of Baldur
Baldur was a Norse God; one of the most beloved, in fact. He was the God of joy and light and summer sunshine. He was the son of Odin and Frigg, and had a twin brother, Hod, a blind God of winter.
When Baldur began to have nightmares which foretold his own death, he went to his mother and father for help. Odin immediately went to speak to Hel, the Goddess of the Dead, and she told him what he feared most; Baldur was, in fact, soon to die. Frigg, upon hearing the news, went out on a quest for a kind of petition to save her beloved son’s life. She asked every living thing in existence to vow never to hurt Baldur. And, because he was the most loved of all the Gods, they all agreed; the rocks and trees and fires and winds and everything there was, each agreed never to bring harm to the God. Frigg returned home and shared what she had done. The family rejoiced and called together a celebration, inviting all of Asgard to join them.
There was a great party and among the attendees was none other than Loki, the trickster God of mischief and deception. Hidden in a disguise, Loki asked Frigg if it was true; had she really asked every living thing not to harm her son? Yes, she had replied, all except for one small little insignificant plant she passed by because it was just so harmless; Mistletoe.
The party continued and the Gods of Asgard, upon learning that Baldur was virtually indestructible, began to make a game of it, tossing rocks and lobbing arrows at Baldur to watch them bounce off of him, causing no damage. The Gods would do this and laugh, and they continued to hurl everything they could find at him, watching whatever it was fail to make a mark and then roll away again as the place filled with laughter.
Hod, Baldur’s blind brother, was rather left out during this time, being unable to see where to throw anything. Hod was approached by someone with a soft and soothing voice who asked if he would like to join the fun. Of course, Hod nodded. But he didn’t know that the voice belonged to Loki.
Loki pressed a stick into Hod’s hand--a branch of mistletoe fashioned into a dart-- and turned the God’s body to face his brother across the room. Loki pointed Hod in the right direction and instructed him to throw, which he did. The mistletoe dart sailed through the air and struck Baldur in the chest, sticking into his heart. Baldur fell down dead.
The Gods were silent, except for Frigg. She wailed as she ran to her son and pulled the mistletoe from his heart. She cried over the branch and cursed herself for overlooking it. As she cried, her tears pooled in the leaves of the dart and became the white berries of the plant. She hung the twig in the archway and vowed that mistletoe would never again be overlooked. She promised that the plant would never again be used to cause pain, but only to spread love and joy as her beloved Baldur would have done. Frigg vowed to leave the mistletoe hanging throughout the season and to place a kiss upon anyone who passed beneath it.
In my solitary practice, I do try to honor Goddesses and Gods when I can, but I am Pagan more in practice than in religion. I’m not religious at all; I’m one of those people who considered themselves spiritual but not religious.
Anyway, here is a list of the Deities I personally like to work with around this time of year. These are the ones that will be getting my Saturnalia offerings this year and who I’ll be invoking in my practices throughout the winter...
The Mythologies I personally subscribe to are that of Norse, Greek/Roman, and Celtic origin. Therefore, the Deities I connect with are from those belief systems.
GREEK / ROMAN DEITIES
Demeter, Goddess of the harvest and fertility, and mother of...
Persephone, wife of Hades and Goddess of vegetation and grain. I begin honoring Persephone at Mabon and continue through the cold season, celebrating her return from the Underworld at Imbolc.
Dionysus, God of wine and merrymaking and imbibing in excess.
Saturn, of course, the God that Saturnalia is named for. An agricultural God, he is also a God of dissolution, renewal, and wealth.
NORSE DEITIES
Baldur, God of joy and purity with a close connection to Mistletoe. I will have a post about this very soon.
Frigg, his mother, Goddess of fertility.
Hod, Baldur’s blind brother, a God of winter, who plays a pivotal role in the story of Baldur’s death, which involves Mistletoe...
CELTIC DEITIES
Cailleach Bheur, The Hag/Crone aspect of the Goddess. The personification of Winter.
The Holly King, where Santa gets his likeness. He rules over the dark half of the year and will soon be defeated by the Oak King who will return to us warmth and sunshine.
Hello and Happy Holidays! If you haven’t read parts one and two, please do that first. Otherwise, let’s continue.
Christmas Day is less than a week away. I’ll be busy this week finishing up shopping, decorating, cleaning, planning, etc. in preparation. But more importantly, I’ll be baking; cookies, biscotti, cookies, bread, and more cookies. I actually have no idea what I’m serving for dinner on Christmas Day yet, but it won’t take long to figure out.
Anyhow, all three of our kids will be here Christmas Eve night; they will open their presents from the Christmas Elf who always brings pajamas and wraps them very poorly. (His name is Bernard and he brings PJ’s because he can sew really well but is not very good at making toys or wrapping gifts.) I will read them a story, probably The Grinch because it’s my favorite one to read aloud, and then it will be bedtime. Once the kids finally fall asleep, I’ll assume the Santa role of course.
Christmas Day, I like to have coffee while we open presents with some sort of breakfast in the oven. After presents are finished, I’ll clean up a little and we will have breakfast, and then the kids will go play with their new things and the old man and I can get a nap in. :)
But when the napping is over, the celebration begins...
I typically put together a big spread of food, like a charcuterie board, to pick at all day long while we drink cocktails and play games, sing and dance, etc. The merrymaking can begin whenever you want it to and it can last as long as you want it to as well. Sometimes, our celebrations go into the night and we end up having friends over to spread even more holiday cheer.
A few things you can do;
* Go Wassailing! It’s like caroling, but drunk, and you can poor out drinks for your dead homies while you share your songs and spirits with neighbors and friends and family. Wassailing is really, truly, underrated.
* Play games! Charades is a classic, but there are so many games out there now that you can play with or without children. Our kids love the card game Exploding Kittens. In fact, every year for Christmas, it was always my family tradition to get a game for the family to play together, and I’ve carried that tradition with me.
* Give to the Poor! The true spirit of the season is about giving to those who are less fortunate. It’s about being with people and holding humanity together, sharing love and joy, and being thankful for another year. Donate your kids old toys to a shelter or child in need. Donate blankets, coats, etc. to the homeless.
* Get drunk and eat all day! Celebrate yourself. Another central purpose of this holiday season is to reward yourself, to take a load off for once, and to be with your family. To celebrate the end of the hardworking harvest season and enjoy the bounties of your labors, to enjoy the things you have spent the year planting and cultivating and growing and harvesting. Don’t be ashamed to sit on your ass and binge--you deserve it. Especially after the year 2020 has been.
So, as you can see, Saturnalia is a lot like Christmas. (And, may I remind you, Saturnalia predates Christmas.) We all celebrate differently and this year more than ever I have chosen to place my intent and focus on what the season originally was celebrated for; being grateful and thankful for the people who are in your life, and for the progress you have made; understanding the balance of darkness and light--the cycle of life, death, and rebirth.
Enjoy your Saturnalia season. Get back to your roots this year and celebrate the way you want to celebrate, for the reasons you want to. I wish you all joy and a clearer, smoother year ahead.
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