Fall is in the air. Rain is in the forecast and I truly love the rain. Nothing cleans the air like a good rain. It’s a favorite time of year for my family and I. I say, bring on the sweater and warm tea weather. As we move towards Fall, we are entering the dark side of the Wheel of the year. I see the Fall equinox as the turn in the wheel of the year, towards darker nights and shorter days. We think of Winter Solstice as the center of the dark time of the year but this darkness for me begins at the Fall equinox. I love snuggling into more blankets on the bed, shoes that cover my cold toes, homemade bread in the oven and soups on the stove.
Fall Equinox is the second of three harvest holidays of the wheel of the year. The first was at Lammas which is always on the first day of August. The third harvest holiday of Samhain (Oct 31st). In the PNW, we are harvesting root vegetables out of our gardens, like carrots and potatoes. We are hoping those last few tomatoes get ripe enough to enjoy one last time before the frosts or rains hit. We might be planning some winter crops or cover crops to add nutrients to our gardens.
Showing gratitude is an easy part of this season. There is so much to be grateful. Abundant foods, often shared by neighbors with overflowing gigantic squash or too many tomatoes, mushrooms popping up in the woods or full bushes of wild huckleberries. Abundance abounds. Hopefully you had a socially abundant and raucous summer. With lots of gatherings with friends, potlucks, luxurious floats in the lake and gorgeous sunsets.
Summer is our extroverted season in the wheel of the year. We are headed into our introverted season. We are entering into the time of year more often shared with close friends and family. Our circles become smaller. We gather in more intimate settings. We might cozy up around the fire with loves ones, wrapped in blankets and flannel. There may be a flash of summer left, we might have a random 75 degree day. We will use that time to clear out the last of the outside projects. At this moment our attention turns to closing out the summer and preparing for winter.
One of my favorite winter prep tasks is preserving foods. In our household we make applesauce, fruit leather with various berries, plums and apples, we make pickles and do other food saving projects. This year we didn’t have a garden because I was out of the country for part of the summer so we have less excess then other years. We will glean apples from neighbors (with permission of course), pick blueberries from u-pick farms and buy veggies from our local farmers markets. When we find good bulk deals, we can, dehydrate and freeze many of our veggies and fruit finds.
Much like cleaning happens in the Spring, Fall is an excellent season to clean, clear, reset and organize your life with the season in mind. As we enter into the season of Virgo which values order, de-cluttering and organizing, take a moment to re-evaluate your life. Virgo wants you to remove the debris from your life to expand your time and space with more efficiency. With school starting for kids, there are many organizing tools available in this season.
Virgo love lists and calendars. This is a great time of year to recommit to your personal care practices such as making meal plans for the week or prepping meals on the weekends. It’s a great time to begin a nature connection practice such as walking in nature every day. Establishing your meditation practice that may have fallen to the wayside through the hectic summer season. Scheduling yourself regular massage, acupuncture or mental health therapy sessions. This time of year, always feels like a new beginning to me. I can recenter my self-care and healthy routines (Virgo loves routines!) I like to schedule my self-care through the end of the year so that I have extra support already on my calendar through the holiday season.
For many witches and pagan practitioners, this also might be a good time to reset your altars. I often have at least four altars going in my house. There is one that is some what stagnant, in the it doesn’t change much and others that are more heavily tended and dynamic. I like to use the energy of Virgo to reset all my altars. One of my altars occupies a five foot by three foot space, so I remove all of the pieces, wipe down the floors, dust the walls and discard anything that is outdated or no longer vibrant. I replace the precious and sacred items first, anything that anchors the altar or hold the theme of the altar. Then I add in the other pieces. This refreshes my practices and the energy of my home.
Fall Equinox falls between Sept 20-22nd each year. This year, I recommend sharing food with friends and family, play some games, make some crafts, and recommit to your own well-being. Re-organize your space allowing Virgo to influence a more streamlined life. Honor this change in the season in whatever way fulfills you. I often say- do not let perfection get in the way of the good. If all you do is light a candle and say a prayer- make that be enough. If you can muster a season of earth-honoring practices- celebrate! With each activity- canning vegetables and fruits, making homemade breads, re-organizing a section of your home, cleaning your altar space, establishing healthy habits, or recommitting to earth-honoring practices- celebrate yourself and the earth.
Karin Olsen is a healer, a seer and a teacher. She has been a massage therapist for over 25 years. She has been studying plants for more than 20 years, owning a herb shop for 15 years. She teaches classes on earth-based spirituality through Moonhill Mystery School in the Salish Sea area. She recently earned a Master of Ecopsychology from Naropa University.
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