I love Litha. It is my favourite festival in the wheel of the year as it occurs at the time where the dusk melts into dawn without ever truly becoming night. Night, in it’s beautiful darkness has its place, and has now indeed returned to take up its place little by little until the longest night at Yule. But Litha for me is a time where anything is possible.
In the vast abundance of summer, school trips, hot classrooms and veg growing wildly in the plot, a pause at Litha is most welcome. On the day of the solstice, as its name suggests, the sun appears to stop in the sky. (Sol = sun, stit = stopped, cheers Latin). Although the sun is not moving at all anyway, I like to take the astrological hint that a wee rest might be in order in a time where expansion is the order of the day. This rest allows for more spaciousness, a greater clarity of thought and more room to grow.
The project is still going strong. We are blessed with a bumper crop of tiny shallots which will be pickled in due course. The grandmother elder in the garden, along with her sisters in a local nature spot have given their flowers to bless a beautiful, sherbet flavoured cordial. The purple of our black elder flowers, mixed with the cream coloured ones, lemon and a hint of orange make this beautiful coral coloured syrup. A riff on the River Cottage Hedgerow foraging recipe by John Wright.
As the sun ‘moves on’ however. now so must I. In my Priestess training for this turn of the wheel we are working with the energies of Brigid of Water. I will be sharing notes and musings throughout the turn of the wheel on Instagram and here in Notes. First up, a refresh of our altar to reflect the turning of the wheel. Abundance is truly all around us and it is time to bottle and brew, gather and dry herbs for magic and medicine before the big harvests start at Lughnasadh (August 1st).
I will also be sharing more on gathering in person. Do follow along here @kikobrighde for updates on my upcoming women’s circle in Oxfordshire.
Your use of language here seems to bring so much of the nature that surrounds you to life--this was a lovely read for me--thank you. And the literal flowers in your garden are stunning and perhaps seem to reflect the figurative garden within your mind, one of abundance and beauty. Thank you for sharing these words and these photos--I can almost smell those roses. 🙏🌹✨