New Moon – Blood / Ancestor Moon Begins

I am writing this on the night of the full moon (a lunar eclipse, no less). I am, as I often am these days, Way Late.
So where have I been?
On the actual night of the New Moon, I was in Toronto, having just arrived for an all-staff meeting for my day job (it’s work-from-home, but the “mother ship” is in TO). There were indiginous folks drumming in Allen Gardens. I think it was something related to the mural of Thirteen Moon Lessons (Ojibwe… I think?) that’s there as well, but I don’t actually know.
 
Ancestor Moon is the moon that falls across Samhain/Feast of the Ancestors/Hallowe’en for me, but it’s also called Blood Moon because this is around about the time of year that people like Barb do their animal harvest[1].
 
The first half of this moon cycle has been stupid-busy. Full of wonderful things – Unholy Harvest being the biggy – but also just flat-out running to make sure everything got done (or done enough) on time for me to head out of town.
Which, of course, it didn’t. I had nothing to read for the Harvest open mic, my Barbarella dress (harness?) was a bit less beaded than I had originally planned (though that wasn’t a bad thing). I’m still unsteady on the poetry set I’m performing this Sunday. Eek. O.O And I’m waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay behind on my PBP posts for the month. Yuck. :-\
But things are moving along.
 
So. Really quickly, because I’d like to do the Full Moon post on time (hoy…), what to expect from Blood/Ancestor Moon?
 
This year, Blood/Ancestor moon begins in Pluto – apt for the Moon that covers Samhain, I think – and pushes the buttons of Big Changes. What’s flipping your lid or bowling you over right now? What’s coming over the horizon and freaking you out or lighting you up? (Maybe both?)
 
On my plate, I’ve got (or had, given the time of this writing) a workshop to give and a poetry show (still coming up) to put on, both of which give me nerves something fierce. I’m worried about how many people will come to the show, and how many will be into what I’m performing, and whether or not my poetry is actually any good. (Some of it is, I know that. But some of it… Heck if I know…)
 
Beyond that, let’s have a look-see.
Blood/Ancestor Moon *is* connected with death. Duh. But, this year at least, there’s also a lunar eclipse coming up that – like most harvest-related events – calls us to have a look back at what we planted in the Spring. Progress reports and check-ins are coming due.
 
Something I think we need to ask ourselves at this time is: What are we willing to let die?
 
Autumn is a time for planting bulbs, sure, and a time for starting new, hearth-based projects (like, say, a new knitting pattern, or redecorating that spare room) that don’t require a lot of outdoor work. But it’s also a time of dying down, culling, and pulling back.
Think about self-care. Think about the scale of your projects and what needs to be slowed or weeded in order to keep going. Think about what can be cut to maintain the strength of the whole.
Are there any projects that you need to put down – temporarily? Indefinitley? Permanently? Consider them and, if you need to, do your grieving.
 
I just turned down a nomination to be a co-chair for a local service-providers’ group that I’m part of. It’s not that I couldn’t have said Yes, it’s that saying Yes would have meant one more plate to keep spinning when I’m already feeling distracted and spread too thin. So I said No.
In another year, I might be able to say Yes. But not right now.
 
I’ve also come to the conclusion that I’m not likely to pick up Voices of Venus again. At least not in a time that can be measured in mere months. That was a bit of a blow, realizing that, and a bit of a disappointment. But it’s also a bit of a relief. “End of an era” as they say.
And there is some grief there. Some disappointment in myself for not sticking it out better or longer. But I’m just so glad it’s done.
 
Anyway.
 
What else?
Oh, right. Ancestors. This moon cycle touches on family. In Canada, this is the time of year when the “Festival Season” kicks off and time gets a little bit away from us. Thanksgiving – or in my case, Harvest – is a time of gratitude, but it’s also a Gathering Of The Tribe. For some of us, that means heading to the ancestral home-place, hanging with the relatives, making a huge feast of traditional, seasonal (or not-so-seasonal) foods, and stuffing ourselves silly. For others – such as myself – it means gathering with a different Tribe, getting vulnerable, opening up our hearts and minds, and having one hell of a kinky party[2].
From this point on, until at least the beginning of January, and possibly all the way to March (whether that’s Queering Power or Ostara) when the balance of light swings past its center again. Who is your family? Who will you honour during the days of the dead? Do you know your lineage?[3]
 
Okay.
So that was my speedy shot at a very, very late New Moon post.
 
 
Stay tuned. 😉
Meliad the Birch Maiden.
 
 
[1] I like the way Barbara Kingsolver talks about “harvesting turkeys” or other livestock because, as she says, the word “harvest” implies intent, planning, and respect for those whom you’re sending to die (or straight-up killing, depending on what the local laws allow you to do).
 
[2] It was awesome, thanks for asking. 😉
 
[3] That’s the opening line from Kathryn Payne’s “Whores and Bitches Who Sleep With Women” in Brazen Femme: Queering Femininity, for those who are interested in such things. 🙂