Waning Quarter Moon Ritual
I chose to make an intention for the Dark Moon coming up here just before New Moon next week. It was about releasing anxiety about writing, banishing of negativity from past experiences, and letting go of unnecessary doubt. It just felt right to do that.
I called upon three Crone Goddesses, Hecate, Cerridwen and Kali to help speed my message to the Universe. And when laying the Tarot spread about shadow work I felt inspired to do something about exactly that as one of my goals for the week to come.
After reading my intention aloud, I burned the paper in a fireproof container and poured water over it and it is to be poured out around a tree tomorrow morning. The spell should work through the night as well, because I truly needed to let go of quite a few attachments that had become unavoidable lately.
And I prefer to do that in the night where everybody else is sleeping and the only sound is the fridge and the TV in the background with an episode of Midsummer Murders. Then it feels okay to do shadow work, if I have had a pleasant day before that night. I had a good day today.
So I´ll finish the night with some writing on shadow aspects of me. That is a private journal for my eyes only. As are my writing on journal prompts. Unless I happen to write something extraordinary good. Then I´ll use it to write here on this blog. Or perhaps even write the book of my life.
The idea with a Waning Quarter Moon ritual is also to celebrate what has been achieved during the Moon´s phases from New to Full Moon. It is to re-assess ideas, to search for something to work for in the next cycle and to release anything that no longer serves me.
We celebrated my work with my 6 New Moon intentions with a bonfire in the garden after the ritual. And here we also released many feelings and past hardship. It comes around a couple of times of year, and then it is best to act on it by this way of showing that life goes on whatever shows up on the path.
My 6 New Moon intentions were to grow my blog slowly, to master my anxiety, to celebrate my life experience, to study witchcraft more, to be more creative and to release more negativity. I have reached my goals for this period of time, and now it is time to set new intentions on the New Moon ritual next Friday.
These intentions will most probably concern my passion for writing, because there is so much going on in me about how I would like to be able to write. The witchcraft part of me is also struggling to be heard in the midst of this. I still need to learn more about magickal oils so that I can use what I already have in rituals.
Daily Tea Meditation Ritual
Clear and clean your sacred space. Make a cup/pot of your favourite tea. Pick your special cup and whatever comes in handy and significant to the intention of the meditation ritual.
To me it is to relax and to heal with a good book close by, some calming music and an inspiring atmosphere from incense/oil burners.
I always bring a notebook and a pen, just in case inspiration strikes for some writing. I also include a small decorative altar cloth, scented candles, crystals and my aromatherapy blend/fragrance for the intention behind, be it physical, mental or spiritual.
Make sure to be undisturbed, turn off the cell phone (unless you are going to use it to listen to inspirational music) and the TV. Set an egg timer for 20 minutes, if you need to, more if it appeals to you and you have the time for it.
And sit/lie down as comfortable as you can. This is your time, dear reader, make good use of it. Calm your breath and meditate upon what comes into your mind or what you have planned for the day. Remember to write down good ideas and thoughts.
The goal of this is to relax the mind, the body and the soul. We live in stressful times, so every attempt to regain energy is of great importance. And 20 minutes at a time is not much time, but it is enough to calm down and do some well-deserved grounding.
I have the time to meditate for up to an hour, because I´m early retired due to both physical and mental ailments. And I do it as often as possible, because it especially relieves my anxiety. But I often use meditation for concentration purposes as well.
At first, it took me quite some to time to calm my breathing enough to be able to concentrate only on the purpose of the meditation ritual, which to me is to relax and read on a daily basis. But after some attempts, I quickly got up to first 5 minutes, then 10 and so on.
Today I only need to get my grip together and just go in my witch´s den and actually do some meditation and reading. Therefore, my plan this week has been to go in there, no matter how bad or good my day may be. And it has been a thrill.
Beginning Sunday afternoon it has become a new daily witchy ritual to me. I finished a book and I got things written down that I would not have done, had it not been for the daily tea meditation ritual. Day by day I picked what I found relevant to the ritual.
Then suddenly, without warning, there it was, my essential oil jasmine. I´ve been looking for it for a couple of months, now it felt as the Universe had put it there for some reason. It brings me to my plan to make my own aromatherapy blends for anxiety and menopause.
Shopping trip with a special person and aromatherapy
Tuesday I went with my sweet neighbour to a shopping center in a bigger town with more people than were I live my daily life. We had a great time, sharing thoughts and going shopping for the both the pleasure of that and for practical reasons.
I have all the essential oils, but I needed new bottles for the blends and a measuring syringe to measure the carrier oil correctly. Wednesday my fingers would not cooperate, so my husband helped me in the process of making aromatherapy blends for my menopause and anxiety problems.
My aromatherapy blends for menopause and anxiety, with 35 ml sweet almond oil as carrier oil , because it is also highly usable for massage purposes, are (remember to shake the bottle before use) :
- Menopause : 2 drops clary sage (anti-stress), 2 drops geranium (to soothe symptoms), 3 drops rose (for general well-being) per 10-15 ml carrier oil,
- Anxiety : 2 drops bergamot (balance emotions), 2 drops rose (for confidence), 2 drops ylang ylang (to calm down) per 10-15 ml carrier oil.
After trying the blends myself by inhalation I had only a few minor anxiety attacks and no irritating menopause symptoms on the first day. And as you can see on the picture below, it also ended up with a daily tea meditation ritual after making the blends. The intention that day was to read about writing.
Now I only need to apply the blends to pillows, handkerchiefs and oil burners and use them on a daily basis. I like to use my knowledge and to DIY. So this opportunity was also suitable to conquer my creative block that has been nagging me for quite some time.
I can highly recommend the use of essentials oils, with care however, because they are strong and need to be diluted in either oil or water before use. I prefer to use demineralised water when diluting oils for e.g. room sprays and oil burners, and sweet almond or grape seed oil when making blends for my ailments.
But I also strongly recommend regular contact with your general practitioner concerning any health issue, as I see essential oils as a supplement only to correct prescription medicine and only when the condition is under some sort of control. Your health is too important to take risks.
When I make aromatherapy blends I always try to compose a mind stimulating and calming atmosphere in the blends. In other words, I try to infuse my blends with positivity, because I need it to be become able to live a peaceful life. And I only use small portions of essential oils, because they can be expensive at times.
Therefore, I have bought a collection of 20 common essential oils so that I only have to buy supplementary oils on the rare occasion that I´m not content with what I already have. I plan to renew my collection every second year. And to renew my aromatherapy blends, as long as they are helpful to me.
Reflections on this week´s reading about writing
My writing adventure this week has been truly ecclectic, since I have begun my writer´s notebook with lists of overused words, such as very, and because I´ve been studying different perspectives on core issues like first, second and third person point of view (and my point of view here).
Now I need to write myself and leave the advice to grow in my mind. I am inspired by many an author, so to choose to read A Farewell To Arms by Ernest Hemingway and to buy On Writing by Stephen King is to love to learn to write better each time with hard work and many hours ahead of me writing.
Writing and reading are true passion to me. I have a natural gift to easily pick my words, and I like the feeling of a well written book in my hands. If not reading books, then there is always another blog post somewhere in the Universe that speaks to me. And if not writing here, then there is always the note book.
Or a hastily scribbled sentence on a random piece of paper, the ever-recurring yearly and so mundane diary/calendar, and all sorts of big, medium and small books/binders. I always find my way to write, despite regular attacks of writer´s block anxiety. I need more organization, however.
I need to do physical writing exercises with as many journal prompts as possible. The more I write, the more I learn. And I continue not to edit my first draft before it is written in full length. But I need to discipline myself on writing. I write when inspired, often in the late hours, where everybody else is at sleep.
So my plan for next week´s New Moon ritual is to write down my intentions about writing that I would like to work with during the next couple of months. And to make good use of all my notes and actually get some writing done that is worth reading by others than myself.
I really need to let go of some steam, some irrelevant anxiety and some feelings of self-doubt, knowing that not only have I a natural gift for writing, I also have all the necessary facilities for me to actually do something I love to do, write. Therefore, a bonfire in the garden after a ritual is necessary for me to release old energy.
So there is only one way forward, and that is practice, practice, practice. To sit day every day and write for the sake of it. No more fear from the infamous writer´s block ? I prefer to call it controlled fear now, because I believe it has to tickle a bit in my guts when writing.
There has to some incentive for spending so many hours contemplating what to write next and how to get pass the inner doubts of not being good enough. And that incentive is the feeling of wholeness after having written something good.
Conclusions after a long week
It has been a busy week. But I managed to achieve all of my goals. What about that something extra that I referred to in last week´s post ? Well, it is as good as it gets. It is my inspiration at this moment right before publishing that I truly can contemplate on what I have learned this week.
I have learned to trust my inner gut feeling and to control my anxiety with strong will and some aromatherapy. I have discovered that fear of writing is to master, if you only keep on trying to write that little extra that makes the whole difference.
And I have been taught by many a good writer during the week that writing is a tough discipline where you never get to old to learn new perspectives. Last, but not least, I have found that I need to write at least one blog post a week, reserving the maybe-posts for my thoughts during the week.
So this has also been a tough week with many thoughts and ideas about writing, whereas the witchcraft part of it has been my daily tea meditation ritual. I did plan the ritual on the day this time, which to me is a victory of today. Today began tired, it ends with joy and contentment.
I have actually managed two weeks in a row to write 2,500 words worth reading more than once. It speaks of time worth the efforts. Hard work does pay off. I feel free and happy, because now I´m no longer afraid of writing. I just sit down and do it. Instead of talking about doing it.
I´m also proud that I have begun a writer´s notebook. Now there is no excuse to not write down ideas and thoughts when they arise rather than wishing I had done it. All the reading this week has awoken something deep inside me. The need to write and the love of doing it.
My passion about witchcraft remains intact, and it was fun and creative to make my own aromatherapy blends and to feel on my own person that it has a noticeable effect. It is definitely something to try more of in the future. And speaking of that, the Tarot cards today showed me it is time for change.
Besides a New Moon ritual, a Black Moon it is, when there are two New Moons in a calendar month, next week´s post will contain what to expect for September 2019 on this blog. And, of course, my interest in writing will be a recurring theme.
As for now, my writing for the remains of the day will be of a private character, because I need to do some shadow work before bedtime. Blessed Be, dear reader, may your week be joyful and full of positivity. May your days be blessed with the absence of problems and sorrows. So Mote It Be.
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