Gazing in the Mirror

October 31 - The Dying Time

I don't want my life
to be defined by
what is etched on a
tombstone. I want it
to be defined in what
is etched in the lives
and hearts of those
I've touched.
~ Steve Maraboli

Particular worlds will
always begin and end, as
do cabbages and kings;
but creation itself –
the necessity of God's
manifesting Himself in
time and in space – will
never end.
~ Ernest Holmes

There are a variety of observances and festivals at this time of year in many places across the globe. In the United States, most know it as Halloween. For some people the day is recognized as Samhain or All Hallows Eve. In the Northern Hemisphere we have the cyclic dying back of vegetation that allows the plants a period of rest before the returning sun and warmth begin to force the leaves back out into the open on their branches. We have the migration of birds and hibernation for some species of critters. Here in Missouri I notice the cessation of the outdoor noises as the landscape around me becomes very quiet and still.

For a long time now, I prefer to observe this time of year as a "Harvest Festival." This allows some of the symbolism to make more sense to me personally – the pumpkins, corn shucks, bobbing for apples, hayrides and the warmth of bonfires. My favorite book from my son's youngest years was a yearlong tale of pumpkins – planting the seeds, watching them grow, harvesting the pumpkins and entering one at the state fair and winning a ribbon. Then came the carving of the pumpkins, and making cookies and a pie, followed by saving the seeds as the winter snows fall and the children's thoughts turn towards the coming of spring again. Samhain is of Celtic origin and comes from the Irish language for "summer's end" noting the first of the 4 "quarter" days of the medieval Gaelic calendar.

At the time I write this, my boys are growing older. My oldest son is now eighteen years old. The younger one thinks he's about the same age as his older brother. Both boys desire a "more grown-up" experience of the holiday. We failed (due to being rained-out) at the Ste Genevieve Deja Vu Spirit Reunion - a historically relevant ramble through the old cemetery there.  Maybe next year. We've outgrown the commercialized haunted houses in the St Louis, Missouri area. The effects, make-up, costuming and behaviors of the live actors were of a high quality. It was certainly "scary." I felt intimidated and startled by more than one encounter with some ghoulish character. There was a memorable moment in one venue, when we were in a maze of such darkness that was filled with smoke, that what came to mind was the last moments of someone caught in a burning structure. That particular venue was not pleasant for any one of us and it truly was frightening. I am not able to enjoy the visions of dismemberment, blood and gore. I tried to frame it in some metaphysical perspective about the insignificance of physical incarnation, compared to the really "big" picture of All That Is. It is a stretch though.

I grew up on the Mexican border and there they celebrate the Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) with much of the symbolism that we associate with Halloween in the United States. They remember their ancestors and all of those whose lives have passed from the view of those who are still physically incarnated. Both Samhain and Beltane were considered a time when the portal or door to the "Otherworld" opened just enough for the souls of the dead and other disincarnate beings to present themselves to human awareness. In our current human time in history, many of those who are somewhat spiritualized in their perspectives are now feeling that doorway to the non-physical open, now it is not just a seasonal celebration but all the time. I notice a significant increase in the channeling of messages coming from that other side and find that there are more persons interested in facilitating communications with that "other" world, than I remember encountering in the past.

In the old days, there were feasts for the dead and a place was set at the table in their old homes. It was believed these departed loved ones were still inhabiting their former abode. After my in-laws passing, we have continued to have our traditional Sunday night dinners there at the kitchen table, just as we did for a couple of decades when they were alive and present with us. There are times when I do I think of them a lot – like around my in-law's former birthdays or the time of the year when they died and even during holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Sometimes I sense their presence. One can argue that they did leave A LOT of their energy behind in that cabin, where they had lived for so many years. When my husband works on the preservation of their log cabin, which was made from trees cut from the land here, he tells me that he often thinks of them. At my mother-in-law's request, currently we are maintaining that structure in much the same fashion as it was when they were last living there. Someday, one or both of our boys may want to live independently there. Certainly, we know that changes to current conditions will likely evolve over time.

It is very hard for me to forget that my father-in-law left us just after Halloween on Nov 4th, 2007. It is almost twelve years ago now. The day he died, the kids and I had a "leaf party" by playing in the brightly colored leaves that were so brilliant then (but have mostly already fallen now this year) as his body was dressed for leaving us. There was no funeral, just the waving good bye to him after he was wheeled out on a gurney covered in a homemade quilt. I still remember how the young boys climbed up in the Raintree, and I stood arm in arm with my husband, as we all watched the funeral home's Suburban drive up the private road and away from the cabin. While it can be sad to realize it, all things must pass. No other season reminds me of endings quite the way this time of year makes plainly evident.

~ perspective

I am grateful for the memoriesthat remain with me of lovedones no longer physically present.I enjoy the festivals of harvest time and abundant resources ready to carry us through the dead and restfulmonths of the fallow season.In our lives we see many periodsof growth, followed by periodsof release and with theseexperiences we learn to hold onloosely and not be too fiercelyattached.I am comforted by theconsistency of the return,year after year, and of longheld traditions that connect mefully to the long history ofmy species' evolution.I embrace the wisdom ofendings, reminders of changeand its value for clearing thespace necessary to allow thenewer things to come in theirown time.

#ancestors #bonfires #change #comfort #continuity #cycles #festivals #Halloween #Samhain #seasons