Note: this entry was written the day before Beltane. It was posted later but could not be back-dated.

May 1st is Beltane and in this witchy household it marks the beginning of the summer season as well as a huge excuse to feast!

This is our first Beltane with our new family member (my soon-to-be-sister-in-law) and I’m thrilled to add another witch to the family coven. When we can’t all be together (which fortunately this Beltane we will be) it is always good to have back-up.

Here is some interesting information on Beltane and then I will tell you how we will be celebrating:

Beltane has long been celebrated with feasts and rituals. Beltane means fire of Bel; Belinos being one name for the Sun God, whose coronation feast we now celebrate. As summer begins, weather becomes warmer, and the plant world blossoms, an exuberant mood prevails. In old Celtic traditions it was a time of unabashed sexuality and promiscuity where marriages of a year and a day could be undertaken but it is rarely observed in that manner in modern times.

In the old Celtic times, young people would spend the entire night in the woods “A-Maying,” and then dance around the Maypole the next morning. Older married couples were allowed to remove their wedding rings (and the restrictions they imply) for this one night. May morning is a magickal time for wild water (dew, flowing streams, and springs) which is collected and used to bathe in for beauty, or to drink for health.

Think of the May pole as a focal point of the old English village rituals. Many people would rise at the first light of dawn to go outdoors and gather flowers and branches to decorate their homes. Women traditionally would braid flowers into their hair. Men and women alike would decorate their bodies. Beltane marks the return of vitality, of passion. Ancient Pagan traditions say that Beltane marks the emergence of the young God into manhood. Stirred by the energies at work in nature, he desires the Goddess. They fall in love, lie among the grasses and blossoms, and unite. The Goddess becomes pregnant of the God. To celebrate, a wedding feast, for the God and Goddess must be prepared. Let Them guide you! Breads and cereals are popular. Try oatmeal cakes or cookies sweetened with a dab of honey. Dairy foods are again appropriate; just make a lovely wedding feast and you are sure to enjoy yourself! An early morning walk through a local park or forest could be fun for everyone. Gather up some plants or flowers to display in your home. Mom and daughter could braid their hair, and weave in a few tender blossoms.

How we will celebrate:

We’ll get together the day before to weave our chaplets (flower crowns) and create our May Day baskets. Traditionally we use the colors of red and white. I have a maypole staff that we use for the ritual that I have used for over 20 years. It has ribbons and flowers and bells hanging from it.

The May Day baskets are made with fresh flowers and traditionally we leave them on the doorsteps of our neighbors homes. This will be the first time I do this in this neighborhood, so I am excited to leave our springtime gifts.

The women in my family wear white and we have ankle ribbons with bells on them. We jingle like mad which creates an even more festive atmosphere. The men in my family (currently only my brother) usually participate only in the feast and merry-making. That’s actually better though, since when the women get together and start weaving flowers we can be pretty silly!

On Beltane we will light the fire pit at sundown and have our feast followed by the ritual.

Our feast this year will include homemade breads (I have been learning to bake bread and will make a cranberry raisin pecan bread and a sun-dried tomato herb bread), oatcakes with honey and almonds, a slightly non-traditional spring risotto with peas and prosciutto as well as fresh fruits and nuts for dessert. Ale and mead are always served of course.

Since ours is a family celebration it is rather tame. We just celebrate the season, enjoy the great weather and feast.

Can it be that Samhain (pronounced sow-in) was almost half a month ago?

As I put away all the decorations from this years holiday I was struck how wonderful it had been to be with my family including a new member of the family; my brother’s girlfriend.  Everything seemed that much more exciting because she had never been part of such festivities before. It also made it brand-new for me too.

In my life as a witch I have been through many Samhain celebrations. Next to Yule (which is a part of the Christmas celebration) it is our biggest holiday. It has always held a great deal of meaning to me, because it was a month of being a witch very publicly and I always enjoy that opportunity. When you can walk into the local Barnes & Noble and see witchcraft books on display, front and center - it is a GOOD thing.

I’ve been to enormous celebrations deep in the woods where a bonfire would rage in a clearing for three days! I have been to huge parties in cities that took place in a hotel ballrooms. I’ve been to every manner of Halloween party and just dressed as myself - a witch!

This year I chose the theme of the Goddesses three incarnations: Maiden, Mother, Crone. Since we were welcoming a new female to our circle it seemed appropriate. There is immense power in the number three; and our celebration reflected that.

We dispensed with some of our regular traditions in order to have a bit more of a party atmosphere. Some things were the same - the spells I cast, the ritual to celebrate the sabbat, all the decorations, candles, abundant feast, candy, dressing up like witches (always fun for the kids who come to my door trick or treating) and the toast to the Goddess with our sweet honey wine.

We didn’t do the dumb supper this year (where we celebrate our ancestors who have passed on with a silent supper) or communicate with the dead. I felt a little raw on that, since someone I had a great affinity for had passed on the day before. I felt far too close to their passing and knew with so much energy being pulled by the witches present that it would be too much to call upon the dearly departed. Also when someone dies you want to give them time to cross over. In Buddhism it is three days. There are many stories about monks and bodhisattvas who die in meditation and they are not moved physically for three days. The body does not degrade during this time, either.

Thus without the death component to Samhain we celebrated life and in doing so we had a rip-roaring feast!

We had Scottish meat pie (a recipe from the Highlands), Colcannon (a Celtic specialty of mashed potatoes and cabbage - the most authentic of all the dishes prepared), maple glazed baby carrots and pumpkin cheesecake. Usually we have Soul Cakes too but this year we just had shortbread. Soul Cakes are also very traditional to the original Samhain holiday. They were the “treat” that was given to beggars as they passed from house to house on Halloween night. They would sing this song: