Samhain

So here we are again at Samhain (pronounced Sow-in or Sow-en), and even though this mighty forest Beech is sporting a spooky 'Scream' mask, today has  nothing to do with Halloween and all that nonsense. Samhain is real, and has it's origins way back in the mists of human history. It's the end of the yearly cycle, all the crops are gathered in, the fruits have fallen, it's the last harvest (the meat harvest), it's a time of reflection after the years toil. It's the herald of a new year, well, not quite, it's a time to take stock, it's a time of rest and of dreaming, dreaming of plans some of which will become the seeds we plant in spring. It's the dark part of the year, before the sun returns at Winter Solstice. Samhain is also a time when the veil between worlds is at it's thinnest and we can commune with our ancestors and those who passed beyond. Though, it's not a scary time of ghouls and monsters, or any of that shit, it's a beautiful time, when those who've gone, return and join me by the fire, at bit like the end scene in 'The Return of the Jedi'. There's food and a welcome for them, I say my piece, I remember, then slump against the woodpile, to watch as the fire licks at the clear night sky, and fuelled by Calvados, I reminisce on the year past and drift off on flights of fancy into the year to come. A blessed Samhain to y'all. I hope your year was good and the year to come surpasses it.