Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Celebrating Michaelmas

"Brave and true I will be
Each good deed sets me free.
Each kind word makes me strong.
I will fight for the right,
I will conquer the wrong."









Happy Michaelmas, my friends!

The Michaelmas festival reminds us to both summon, and honour the courage displayed each and every day – in noble acts big and strong. It reminds us to be a champion for others, to look for the good in all and to always strive toward our fullest human potential. The festival is named for the archangel Michael, the guardian of humanity, who inspires courage, initiative, and steadfastness. The image of St. Michael, with his golden sword, gives us the courage to face the growing cold and darkness of the turning of season. As the world around us draws inward, we too begin to draw into ourselves in preparation for the coming season of introspection and contemplation. 

We gathered with friends on Saturday afternoon to celebrate Michaelmas, the Fall Equinox, and the harvest season. We sat under our birch trees and made corn husk dolls, and swords, from tree branches. We bobbed for apples, and roasted some, topped with cinnamon, over the open fire. Apple cider was kept warm over the fire, and we enjoyed a delicious potluck. It was a stunning autumn day, and we enjoyed it to its fullest.

At this point in our homeschooling journey we keep things pretty simple around festivals. I don't explain the festival to Reece, I bring it to him through song, verse, story, and crafting, and then allow it to sleep within him. Over the years, as he grows, he will come to understand the deeper meaning of this festival, but for now simply being immersed in the activities surrounding the day are enough.

As with most of our festival celebrations, our Michaelmas celebration was simple, but meaningful, and as always, it was wonderful to share it with friends.

42 comments:

  1. What a wonderful way to go through traditions and family roots!

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    1. Thank you my friend. I feel very lucky to be able to share these festivals with like minded families, and to have them become yearly traditions :)

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  2. What a lovely way to celebrate. I love the idea of bringing them all together and making your own celebration, I am sure that is what has happened for millennia :). We shall be having a small celebration at home today. We made some dragon bread yesterday which we will eat with lunch, when we will also have a story, poem and song ;). It would be lovely to share it with friends, like we did last year, but I am trying to keep things simple for a while after a hectic August!

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    1. Thank you, we really enjoyed our celebration. Your celebration sounds lovely too, much like ours today during our homeschool day.

      You are right, it is nice to share these things with friends, but sometimes keeping things close to home is nice too. Hope you had a wonderful day.

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  3. it's beautiful and very inspiring !

    Once again I find myself in the way you do ... Living the event through the beauty of the moment and let the consciousness of what lived grow ... then only deepen theories. I do the same with my children

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    1. Thank you Chantall. Yes, you have stated it beautifully. I think sometimes we give our children too much information and it brings them out of that dream like state of childhood. My hope is to keep Reece there as long as possible, so he can really soak up his childhood, there is plenty of time ahead for him to gain information and go deeper.

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  4. It looks like you had a wonderful day and celebration Kim :) x

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  5. What a fantastic way to celebrate together!

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  6. Oh, how I wish we could be part of your celebration! It sounds absolutely divine! Happy Michaelmas Day, friends! xo

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    1. Me too! One day we will have to get together for a festival Shel...wouldn't that be wonderful! xo

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  7. That looks so wonderful Kim! Wish that I could have been there to celebrate with you! We are enjoying fall here so far this year, and are celebrating Michaelmas today. Sending you love! <3

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    1. Thanks Tiffany. It would have been wonderful to celebrate with you too. Glad that fall is treating you well so far, hope you enjoyed your celebration today. Much love to you too. xo

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  8. I have never celebrated Michaelmas so I really appreciate seeing the components of it here in your post. Thank you for sharing. I especially like the corn husk dolls. I hope everyone had a nice time.

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    1. You are most welcome, always nice when you can find a new reason to have a little celebration :)

      Everyone had a great time, and the corn husk dolls were a big hit.

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  9. Do you read the story of St. George and the Dragon? I do love that poem at the beginning of this post. Lovely!

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    1. Yes, we do. As well as Dragon Baked Bread, and also The Most Beautiful Dragon in the Whole World. We have been reading them over the last week, and slowly building up to today. The kids have loved it.

      Thanks KC!

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  10. Simple and meaningful is the best in my opinion! Glad you had a great autumn day.

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  11. Happy Michaelmas to you too - and I like your plan to have festivals just be part of the year and the deeper meaning come later :)

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    1. Thanks Carie. It works for us, as a family, and allows us to create a beautiful rhythm to our year, with rituals that ground us. Reece will come to learn the deeper meaning of these festivals as he ages, and then our celebrations will change a little, and grow in different ways.

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  12. Looks like you guys had a wonderful day.

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  13. Lovely! We celebrated today with my sister's family. Michaelmas is pretty low key for us as well. As our kids grow so will how we celebrate. Be well.

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    1. Thanks my friend. I peeked in at your blog, it looks like you had a great time celebrating too.

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  14. Since I've "known" you for years, I remember your celebrations here and love seeing him grow up and the traditions changing a little but staying the same.

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    1. Aw, thank you Karen. It is amazing to have this wonderful community of people, from around the world, who are part of this journey with us.

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  15. I am once again inspired and warmed by your gentle/ full days. I love that you just let the rhythm of the festival steep within your son. Sometimes, as parents, we feel we have to explain everything but children absorb things through more channels than words can convey. They feel it in their bodies and hearts and that is probably the fullest way to appreciate something. Happy Michaelmas to you :)

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    1. Oh Suzy, thank you so much for your very sweet comment. Our children take in so much more then we can ever possibly imagine through the life we lead, and the way we move through our days. And yes, they feel it in their bodies and hearts.

      Thank you. xo

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  16. What a wonderful celebration! Happy Michaelmas!

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  17. I just love how you allow Reece to absorb things without "explaining". I catch myself doing this sometimes and I try to back off. And I've found over the years that they really grasp things more profoundly when there are less words and more modelling. You are a wonderful example. Thank you for sharing this.

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    1. Aw, thank you Alexa. Yes, I totally agree with you about less words and more modelling. Our children don't a need a play by play about everything, sometimes it is okay to just let things rest inside them.

      xo

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  18. It is so nice to hear other parents think outside the box when it comes to teaching. I like that you don't explain Michaelmas, but, instead just let Reece experience it and take it in slowly. Something to think about when I feel I need to lecture my kids (and make a power point presentation) on every subject.
    Happy Michealmas BTW.

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    1. Thanks Matt, that is so nice of you to say, and I appreciate it.

      Haha, yes, they don't always need all the information right now. It is okay to let things rest in them, and then come back to it.

      Thank you, to you too!

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  19. Love it! We combined birthday celebration, Michaelmas and lunar eclipse into one big party with a fire!

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    1. Thanks Jen! Oh, that sounds wonderful. I bet you had a great time.

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  20. So inspiring Kim. Meaningful and simple Michaelmas. I really like it :-)

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  21. I always love your festival celebrations, this one looks perfect as ever.

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