Postcards from The Hedge - Dispatch 9: 'The young thrushes are dancing in our hearts at The Trailblazery'

 

"Chuirfeadh sé na smóilíní ag sclimpearacht i do chroí.
 
It would set the young thrushes dancing in your heart."
  

Share this Postcard from the Hedge

Welcome to our ninth dispatch of Postcards from the Hedge. This month's care package has been prepared by our founder Kathy and guest contributor Michael Ryan. 

Dear Ones,

The young thrushes are dancing in our hearts at The Trailblazery. We have just travelled through the Autumn Equinox here in Ireland, a threshold time that ushers in a whole new seasonal spectrum of colour, cooler temperatures and fading light. Autumn Equinox is the second Harvest Festival and an invitation to completion as the Wheel of the Year soon draws to a close, until the next spiral...

The Wheel of the Year symbolises the continuous turning of time and mirrors the cycles of birth, death and rebirth in nature. As we transition between seasons, we are called to align with the rhythms and seasons of the wild world. If we take our cues from the living world we can learn to track our inner seasons. Just as everything in Nature is continuously giving and receiving, we too can dance with the opposing forces and embody polarity in our psyche and in our soul, especially at this Equinox portal.

Our next pivot occurs at Samhain which is the Celtic New Year. This is the death festival, marking the descent of Winter. The ancients intuitively understood that it is in the darkness of the ‘womb or tomb’ that new life is created or reborn. It is also in the darkness of the earth that diamonds are formed. And so it is for us too.

Latest news from The Hedge School

Our newest offering Scoil Scairte opens on Thursday. This Irish language project has been in gestation in my heart for almost eight years and so we are "ar bís" to finally welcome so many of you to our inaugural immersion. If you didn't manage to secure a spot for this edition please sign up for the waiting list for future news and updates. 

There are many other exciting creative projects happening all over the island of Ireland that can help reconnect us to the gifts of our ancestral traditions. Wisdom Keepers like Mari Kennedy and Michael Ryan are both offering inspiring year-long learning journeys. 

"The Celtic Wheel is a soul journey around the Celtic Ritual year for women. It is a year of connecting into rhythms, ritual, cycles, nature, tribe, sisterhood and weaving ancient wisdom into our modern lives. This is sacred work of the feminine with the invitation of living more balanced, deeply, gently and fiercely alive."

- Mari Kennedy 

unnamed-2.jpg

You can find out more about Mari's Celtic Wheel of the Year resources below. We invited Michael Ryan to share some insights about our ancestors who kept the sacred nature of life at the centre of everyday existence.

​​”Our culture today has forgotten some really simple truths about living rich, connected, meaningful lives. Many of us are beginning to feel the limitations of a culture that has worshiped the power of the mind without including the heart’s wisdom as an essential ingredient. 

We need to journey from the head to the heart

Our ancestors knew that the heart is the part of us that can enter the darkness and meet what is there with wisdom and grace. The mind cannot do that work alone without the alignment of the heart.

The trees were also great anchors for our ancestors, reminders of how we are invited to live in the world. Deeply rooted in the dark stillness, while also alive to the ever changing cycles of life. Our Celtic ancestors remembered that everything is sacred. They honoured that life is a cyclical journey. Dark into light and back into the dark. They wove this wisdom and vision into all their teachings and traditions. Their relationship to the trees was so full of magic and myth, doorways into the unseen realms, but they were also honoured through the practical needs of everyday living, for creating fire, or building houses, or storing food."

- Michael Ryan 

Some Journal Prompts to inspire you 

As this cycle draws to a close, can you discern between what you are harvesting and what you are releasing?

Hand on heart, bring to mind, what are you grateful for?

What are you releasing, completing and letting go of?

As the Autumn ends, what will resource you through the fallow dark winter?

What miracles are you inviting into your life?


Enjoy these days - may the fading light be yours.

Beannachtaí

Kathy and all at the Hedge School

Screenshot 2021-09-27 at 14.42.05.png
 

Hedge School Highlights

Put on the kettle, make a cuppa and watch some golden moments from our Hedge School musicians and performers who remind us to mind ourselves, each other and this place we call home.

Recommended Resources

Here are a few reading, watching and listening pieces inspired by the Hedge School to mind you in the days ahead:

Herbs for the Autumn Equinox

Autumn is all about root medicine. As plants ready themselves for winter, many of them draw their energy down into the roots to wait out a season of cold and rest. Burdock, dandelion, butterfly weed, angelica, and licorice are just a few of the herbs we cherish for their medicine underground. With roots at their peak strength, ready to keep the plants vital and healthy until spring, now is the best time to harvest underground allies.

By working with planetary, elemental, and natural energies of autumn, we can intentionally invite more balance, harmony, and productive communication into our lives. There are a number of plants that can help us in this endeavor:

Cinnamon: Correlated with the elements of Air and Fire and associated with the planet Mercury, cinnamon has been said to attract money, peace, and spiritual attunement. This quintessential autumn ingredient is often baked into apple pies, used to garnish pumpkin spice lattes, or added to other harvest feast favorites—and with good reason! Carminative cinnamon is warming and moistening, and it is often used to support healthy digestion, blood sugar regulation, and normal cholesterol levels, making it a useful balm against holiday overindulgence.

Apple: Linked to the elements Water and Earth and to the planet Venus, this fruit is sacred to goddesses Aphrodite and Freya and is a symbol of love and immortality. Crushed apple leaves can be placed on a fresh wound to discourage corruption, and their powdered peel makes for a divine-smelling addition to a cleansing fall incense blend. Apples were often featured in Pagan Mabon altars to thank the gods for a bountiful harvest. Apples bring their own regulating influences to a harvest-laden table. They are high in fiber and can be used to support regularity, especially when stewed. They also contain malic and tartaric acids which may help with gout, and the pectin in fresh apples may contribute to healthy cholesterol levels.

Lavender: This beautifully scented herb is paired with the element Air and the planet Mercury. Lavender lore touts its ability to encourage healthy and open communication when smelled, attract love when worn, and bring peace when sprinkled throughout a household. Medicinally, it is a wonderful first aid plant to help cleanse minor wounds and soothe burns and bites. Lavender’s calming volatile oils are supportive to sleep and stress relief. To enjoy its serene energy, release lavender essential oil in a diffuser, steep its flowers in a sleepy time tea, or powder it for incorporation into an incense blend for reflection and purification (see recipe below).

Rose: This legendary flower is connected to the element of Water and the planet Venus. Rose is the ultimate love herb and has been harnessed for centuries to bring romance and sensuality into people's lives. It is even recorded that Cleopatra doused herself in rose oil to make herself more desirable, sparking a trend for rose as an aphrodisiac perfume. Therapeutically, rose has astringent and cooling properties that are helpful for skincare, and like many Autumn Equinox herbs, they can also aid digestion. Roses are mood lifting and help tend to the heart space, so add rose to your incense blend to bring artistry and warm the heart.

♪ Listen: For you ears

We are so delighted to welcome Woven Kin, Rising Appalachia and Peia Luzzito our Scoil Scairte family. Here are some of our favourite pieces.

Woven Kin | "Hibernate" Album
Rising Appalachia | "The Lost Mystique of Being in the Know" Album
Peia | Raglan Road
 

Smell: For your Nose

Derived from the leaves, roots, flowers, and bark of plants, pure essential oils are concentrated liquids containing aromatic and beneficial compounds that work in harmony with our bodies. Humans have been using them for centuries to support their health and well-being.


As Autumn brings forth its cooler temperatures and richly colored falling leaves, it's a perfect time to enjoy diffusing and blending with warming essential oils like ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and clove. Cinnamon Bark and clove essential oil both promote a healthy immune response, and may support overall wellness.
Watch: For your eyes

Rising Appalachia | Live Concert

On Dec 15, 2020 Rising Appalachia performed their first-ever livestream concert at Echo Mountain Studios! Featuring Chloe Smith, Leah Song, David Brown, Duncan Wickel, Biko Casini, and Arouna Diarra.


 Read: For your heart

Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times | Katherine May

Listen to Katherine in conversation with Krista Tippet here.


✬ ConnectFor your Soul

Find our more about these year-long learning opportunities.

Mari Kennedy | The Celtic Wheel

Michael Ryan | The Way Home

 
Kat Scott