Equinox Reflections and Seed Gatherings 🍂

We've tipped into the dark half of the year fully now, the balance of equinox being yesterday.  My children and I jumped into the dark half together last night, a lovely feeling just us. As we usually go to big ceremony but couldn't this year.

Have you reflected on and evaluated your year so far, have you thought through all you've gathered in experiences, love, connections, education, work wise, and even materially? Which seeds have you gathered for planting in the coming year?

Have you found balance in your life, what can you clear from your baggage as the dark nights draw in?

I can't help but think of the meaning of spider too, they are abundant in our homes again trying to keep warm too, go inwards and conserve their energies too.

We have a huge one eagerly catching its food by our front door. She feels almost like a guardian of the house. We have so much to learn from spider. They are weavers, seen in many myths as weavers of life's creation in the centre of the earth, or at roots of trees. Many deities have spider connections in myths that were once our origin stories world wide.

As well as gathering nuts, how is your weave? What do you carry? And where are your threads of your lifes weave going? Who are your threads connected to? Do you need to do a bit of cutting in your life's weave, and a tidy up of your web? As you recoup and restore in autumn's time of reflection?

We are heading towards celtic new year now in six weeks for Samhain/ Halloween.

For me this first three quarters of the year, or full celtic year has gone in a flash.  That said last year feels so long ago, so much has happened in this one.

This year has seen my book sales for Pregnancy by the Moon break even and now selling in five spiritual type shops. As a doula I have supported nine families through birth in a fab new way of shared support with a great group of doulas.

I have facilitated or guided ten ceremonies, three mothers blessings, three placenta burials, a handfasting and three namings. Plus many closings and women's healings, but I do these with so many clients little and often, I wouldn't know how many.

Mentoring is taking different directions too, I'm starting a year mentoring this week within the realms of ceremony, and space holding for a lady alongside my doula mentoring. I've also just applied for postpartum doula mentoring with Doula uk too. I love mentoring and seeing doulas come into their own, find their path of passion in life. Most doulas feel this path as a life path, a meaning for being in life, it feels like a 'spiritual' apprenticeship in many ways.

My Shamanic healing has picked up at Anahata Health Clinic too, and whilst I haven't held any healing sessions over summer I will return in a few weeks.

I became a teacher in Shamanic Healing alongside Sacred Drumming at the College of Sound Healing.  My friend and collegue Rosie and I will start teaching this in spring as a training for holistic (healing, massage, sound, sacred drumming practitioners ).

I also completed Shamanic Preparation for Birth online course ( although I still want to keep adding to it 🤣). https://eva-shamanic-pregnancy.thinkific.com/

It's not easy being self employed I often have to evaluate if its hobby or work, are my family seeing benefits? we are so often hand to mouth still despite folks thinking doulas charge alot it doesnt go far when you take out expenses and spread it over the months of support.  It feels as though seven years of efforts part time with being a mum too is now starting to pay off.  Especially now my own training developments can cease for a while. That's a personal thing to write so openly but doulaing can be so.

Most doulas have a hand in different but relating pies.

Over the coming months I haven't taken on birth support jobs because I'm focusing in on other things for a while, I may support two births over December.

October and November is taken up with courses, a personal training and ones im holding space for :

-Sacred Drumming Practitioner Training I'm part of teaching on,

-drum birthing workshop,

- College of Sound Healing conference.

I also spent yesterday aptly at Avebury with my friend Ally planning a workshop for Samhain. We sat with ancestors in West Kennet and designed the day. It was beautiful. It felt so right to be there in the space where even the trees roots tap into ancestral wisdom of the land there.

My teacher Rocio is writing a great training course in hipping and herbs too for people to become practitioners, which I'm supporting her with, it feels an honour to have such trust. I have been encouraging her for so long so this is so exciting! It'll be out next year 🙏

Lots going on ahead as the dark nights draw in mixed with quiet days, more rest days, and time for writing my other two books, and writing three workshops and courses for doulas.

I feel like the squirrel in the photo below that Runa my daughter and I met yesterday busy gathering nuts ready for going inwards. I loved that this guy was the first being we met on our walk to school on the day of Equinox /Alban Elfed.

Part of the seeds of thought and feeling I'm reflecting on and gathering on is how lucky I am to have incredible friends, nothing is possible without them. Amazing family! And incredible children who's bond feels stronger year on year, if that's even possible. Without that level of support and trust I'd be working in a 9 to 5 alongside my bank job no doubt. My heart feels so full.

So much gratitude.

What are you grateful for as you go inwards with the seasons change and step into the darker seasons?

🍂🙏🍁🕸