Harvest Season

Harvest Season (Solia Seasonal post Fall 2017)

In the Northern Hemisphere it's now come to the Harvest Season. Many that celebrate the Wheel of the Year and Sabbats may celebrate this as a time of reaping in what the summer has sown, letting waste away that which is not needed, and preparing for winter. Present themes at hand include: Thanksgiving for what's been received, letting go of that which is not beneficial, transition from the light half of the year into the dark, transformation, death, and the deceased just to name a few. 

Here's a brief summary of the Sabbats and a few ideas on celebrating them. 

Lammas/Lughnasadh

This cross-quarter holiday is the First Harvest of the year, grains especially. The summer has been at its height and there is hope for a little reprieve, perhaps a bit of rain, so the crops will continue to be bountiful well into autumn instead of drying up under the scorching heat of the sun. The days begin to wane as the nights wax and respectively the reign of the God and Goddess. 

Lammas vs. Lughnasadh
Though both acknowledge the seasonal aspects of the holiday, Lughnasadh has associations with Lugh and his foster mother Tailtiu (Irish deities), athletic competitions, and related festivities. 

Established Date: August 1st

Colors: Gold, Yellow, Green, Gray 

Foods: Breads and anything made from grain, wines, blueberries 

Celebration ideas: 

• Visit or hold festivities by favored wells and hilltops
• Hold competitions that display skill and/or strength
• Communing with Gods and Goddesses of abundance and prosperity
• Baking: Of any kind, Blueberry pies/muffins/breads/cookies, Homemade breads of any type
• Crafts related to wheat and grains: Corn dollies, mobiles, weaving, baskets

Mabon/Autumn Equinox

The Second Harvest is the Autumn Equinox, also called Mabon: A harvest of apples, grapes, and late-harvest foods. Once again day and night are at equal lengths, the God and Goddess pause in their dance. It is a time of Thanksgiving and rest and meditation. The God prepares for his journey into the Underworld and the Goddess prepares herself too the approaching dark half of the year.

Date: Fall Equinox, usually around September 21st 

Colors: Orange, Red, Yellow, Maroon, Browns

Foods: Wines, Apples, Squash, Wild Game, Autumn harvest foods, Stews

Celebration Ideas: 

• Feasting
• Apple or grape picking
• Visiting orchards and vineyards
• Giving Thanks
• Reflection and meditation
• Baking: Anything and everything to do with apples- sauce, jam, butter, pies, breads, cookies, cider
• Crafts: Anything apple themed, Cornucopia themed - Recently we've started a tradition where my daughter and I will make a Cornucopia by paper weaving some construction paper and then rolling/shaping it into a cone and adding other pretty decorations. We also make different fruits and vegetables out of construction paper and put them in a bag or tray next to our Cornucopias. Then, between Mabon and Samhain we will write down something we are thankful for on one of the paper pieces of food and fill our Cornucopias here and there. I personally aimed for doing this daily but didn't want to push my daughter and it become more of a chore.

Samhain/Halloween

The Third and Final Harvest, also a cross-quarter holiday, is observed by some as the Celtic New Year and renewal of the Wheel of the Year. The God dies and will remain in the Underworld or Land of the Dead until reborn at Yule. The Crone Goddess mourns His death and so the weather turns colder and darker. It is a time of dark and shadow and when the veil between worlds is thin. The deceased are honored by Feasts of the Dead and offerings are made. 

Established Date: October 31st

Colors: Black and Orange 

Foods: Apples, red wines, red meats, root and vine vegetables like beets, garlic, onion, turnips, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, pumpkin to name some. 

Celebration Ideas: 

• Bonfires and jumping them (cautiously)
• Carving or painting pumpkin or turnip lanterns
• Holding a Mute Supper or Feast of the Dead
• Communing with those passed
• Visiting graveyards of those passed
• Divination of all types
• Self reflection and setting new goals
• Baking: Apple and pumpkin pies, cakes, breads, cookies ect.
• Craft ideas: Pumpkin and apple crafts, letters to the dead, collages and shadow boxes for the dead, making a Samhain/ancestor tree and ornaments for it. Skull and bones crafts and art like mobiles and painting on bones.