At Lughnasadh, my ancestors remembered the Celtic god Lugh by celebrating
the first harvest festival and fields overflowing with grain and corn.
This is traditionally a time of abundance — a golden time of ripening berries and nuts, and a time of thankfulness for the bounty of the natural world.
As we peep now across the threshold into autumn, we may see the fruits of our labours made manifest, feeling gratitude for the blessings of the season and the generosity of the hedgerow.
This moment in the year, too, is sometimes called Lammas.
The Anglo-Saxons called this festival 'loaf mass', which is where Lammas gets its name — and thankfulness for the grain harvest and the baking of bread were key rituals at this time.
Perhaps we may choose to celebrate the ever-turning Wheel of the Year by gathering with friends and family, baking and breaking bread with loved ones, making a corn dolly, or going blackberry-picking.
We have all heard the saying, 'We reap what we sow', and now is a good time to reflect on this — what seeds have we sown that are now bearing fruit? What is golden and abundant in our lives, and what is ready for us to now harvest and enjoy?
As the nights slowly gather in, and we lose a few more moments of light each day, let today be an opportunity to celebrate how far we have come before we step headlong into the dark half of the year.
With five months of the year left, let us harvest our hopes and gather them tenderly, giving thanks to our wild hearts for granting us the courage to follow our dreams — for within you lies a cornucopia of magic, wonder, and all the plenty of the season.