Thoughts

How can one little flower unite millions of people?

How is it that this one little flower has had such a profound impact in a myriad of countries? I’m not referring to the rose, daisy, but the Poppy. Actually the common Corn Poppy. So why does this flower have such a big impact? Every year from the last Friday of October until just after November 11th the Poppy starts to bloom on lapels, blouses, scarves all over the world. This is not just a Canadian thing. The countries that wear the Poppy are UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the UK sends over 3 million poppies to 120 countries.

So again, why do we wear the Poppy? Because every year this little tiny flower unites millions of people together in Remembrance and Hope.

During the First World War (1914–1918) much of the fighting took place in Western Europe. Previously beautiful countryside was blasted, bombed and fought over, again and again. The landscape swiftly turned to fields of mud: bleak and barren scenes where little or nothing could grow. During the First World War, enormous artillery bombardments completely disrupted the landscape, infusing the chalk soils with lime.The spring of 1915 was the first time that warm weather began to warm up the countryside after the cold winter at war in 1914-1915. In the region around Ypres in Belgian Flanders the months of April and May 1915 were unusually warm. And Poppies bloomed!

Bright red Flanders poppies (Papaver rhoeas) however, were delicate but resilient flowers and grew in their thousands, flourishing even in the middle of chaos and destruction. Covering the graves and the ugliness that had been created with blasting and bombing. In early May 1915, shortly after losing a friend in Ypres, a Canadian doctor, Lt Col John McCrae was inspired by the sight of poppies to write a now famous poem called ‘In Flanders Fields‘.

McCrae’s poem inspired an American academic, Moina Michael she began a tireless campaign at her own expense to take up and make and sell red silk poppies which were brought to England by a French woman, Anna Guérin. Who created the American and French Children’s League” through which she organized French women, children and war veterans to make artificial poppies out of cloth.

On July 5th 1921, the Great War Veterans’ Association, the largest of several Canadian veterans groups, adopted the poppy as a symbol of remembrance. The Canadian Legion, formed in 1925, continued this connection. The poppy was worn on the left lapel and close to the heart to recognize the sacrifice of soldiers in times of war. They were initially made by disabled veterans and the proceeds of sales, then and now, go towards funding veterans’ needs.

…….. So where are we now?

In 2011 Canada distributed over 18 million poppies. So let me ask again, Why wear the Poppy?

Because by wearing a poppy, you aren’t just remembering the fallen: you’re supporting a new generation of veterans and Service personnel that need our support. Past, present and future.

It’s All About the Balance Baby – Autumnal Equinox and 8 steps to harness this energy.

Jenny Heston · 5:28 pm ·

There are 8 spots on the wheel of the year and these are called Sabbats. 4 are major and 4 are called “lesser” in other words they are the mid point between 2 of the major. So this Equinox, which is also known as Mabon (named after the Welsh god, Mabon, son of the Earth Goddess Madron), is a lesser Sabbat as it is mid way between the summer solstice and the winter solstice. Does this mean it has less energy – heck no!

This is the second harvest, the fruit harvest, late July we celebrated the first harvest festival which was Lammas. With this festival, you are being invited to look at the seeds that you sowed in the Spring, on every level, and reflect on how they have manifested. Most crops are in and the fields are beginning to look brown and are slowly going to sleep for the winter (unless they are filled with gorgeous orange pumpkins). I personally have pulled up all my soft and tender zucchini plants and am almost done harvesting my tomatoes, but I am going to leave my carrots and beets in the ground until first frost (it makes them far more juicy!) In my wanderings with the hounds I also found a gorgeous old, old abandoned orchard filled with apple trees and have been harvesting apples galore (although the bears have had something to say about that!)

What you need to appreciate is that Mabon is the balance point, the place where there is equal amount of day and night. While we harvest and celebrate the glorious gifts we are receiving we have to accept that the soil is dying, and release. We have food to eat, but warmth is gently tucking behind us and cold and dark lie ahead. Now if this if making you gulp a little, don’t! Remember you can’t experience light without the dark and vice versa. When the day and night are of equal length, it offers a powerful vibration and harmony between the time of creation (night) and the time of manifestation (day). This allows the flow between creation and manifestation to be more seamless and flows with ease and effortlessness. There are no limits on what you can manifest during an Equinox, however, for a Spring (Southern Hemisphere) it is a time of new beginnings and for us in Autumn it is a time to harvest, release and let go.

So how do I mark this time and celebrate it and harness this glorious energy you may be asking. Good question and there are a myriad of ways, so pick whichever resonates for you. You can do more than one most certainly, but if it feels like a chore – put it to the side!

Create An Altar

Now if the word altar makes you uncomfie, call it a celebration nook or a gratitude space. It could be on the dining room table, a kitchen counter a dresser – you name it. Gather up leaves, acorns, seed pods, rocks, twigs – whatever calls out to you and put them in a lovely spot and enjoy them. Take your kids or friends on a Nature walk. When you have gathered and placed give them a little blessing and thanks. It’s the ritual of taking time to acknowledge that’s important, not the objects per se.

Clean House!

With the longer nights soon approaching and most of us spending more time inside than out, this is a perfect time to do a fall version of spring cleaning. Gather together the things that no longer serve you, it could be clothes you don’t wear anymore, books that you aren’t going to read again, those random arsed odd soxs that you hold onto just in case…… Release them. Gift them to a charity shop (not the odd soxs), take them to your library, but give them a little pat and thanks and pass them on to someone else who will enjoy them. Give your house a good clean and then do a smudging. Decorate your home with symbols of the harvest season. Buy or pick a gorgeous bouquet of orange, gold and green and have it somewhere where you can see it daily.

Celebrate Your Abundance!

When we say abundance, it doesn’t necessarily mean material or financial gain — you may be abundant if you have friends who love you, a satisfying family life, or a rewarding career. Think about that things you have for which you are most grateful. I get Notes from the Universe, every morning (and I love them) and today’s was – “If you’re reading this right now on a phone or computer, you’re rich. If you have somewhere to go today, you’re connected. And if there is anyone anywhere for any reason knows where you are at this moment, you’re loved.“

You can turn it into a game with your family at dinner time and everyone takes turns to share what makes them feel abundant (it’s very cool to hear all the various responses).

Play With Your Food

If you have access to berries, apples, pears or whatever fruit is around you right now. Gather it all together and create an abundance mandala. In other words, play with your food! Get your most favourite dish out and arrange the fruit in any way that you like that resembles a mandala and have it for dessert (or your main course). Involve your kids, have friends over, but celebrate!

Apple Magic

Apples are the perfect symbol of the Mabon season. Long connected to wisdom and magic. The apple has figured significantly in many sacred traditions. It is known as a symbol for life and immortality, for healing, renewal, regeneration and wholeness.

If you cut an apple widthways it reveals a pentagram containing seeds. The five points represent the elements of Earth, Air, Fire, Water with Spirit at the top, and thus also the directions of East, South, West, North and Within. The circle of the apple around the pentagram represents the eternal circle/cycle of life and nature, and of wholeness.

So if there are apple trees nearby, or a local pick your own orchard go get some apples! Then think of the pies, crisps and crumbles you can make with your glorious fruit. You could also dehydrate (dry) the apple circles and make them into an edible wreath.

It’s All About the Balance Baby

As I mentioned earlier, Mabon is the perfect time of balance between light and dark. So why not give yourself the gift of balance. Take a few moments or longer and just sit and breathe slow and deep and meditate on balance. Reflect on how you handle pressure, how you manage your emotions and other people’s. Is your life in balance? Do you make sure you get enough rest, water and play or are you pushing and striving and feeling a tad overwhelmed? What little shifts and changes can you do to create more balance in your mind, body, work, home life, family? Do you need to practice saying No more or do you need to practice saying Yes more? Get it? So just take some time and if you feel inclined write down a few small tweaks that would make you feel more in alignment and balanced.

Decorate with Sunflowers

As I have said repeatedly, I love, love sunflowers! Their big bobbly heads that track the sun, their glorious cheerful faces that waft in the breeze. But as with all things, that changes. The petals are starting to drop off and the seed heads are beginning to curl back a bit and the leaves are drooping. So I’m gently going to trim the heads off the flowers, save one and dry the seeds (so I can’t plant my seeds at Spring Equinox) and with all the rest (and there are quite a few), I’m threading them on fishing line and hanging them in the branches of the trees for the birds. That way the birds and the squirrels can stock up on seeds before the winter comes.

Light ‘Er Up!

Get a candle or candles and as you light them you can ask for blessings on your home, hearth and self. This doesn’t have to be complex or over the top (although if you want it to it can be). You can just simply take a breath, light your candle and say “Goddess or Green Man, I ask for your blessing on this special day. Bless my harvest, my home, my hearth and my self. Keep us safe and warm, the winds away from the door, harmony and health abounding. I give thanks and so it is.” Voila! Remember though, please don’t leave candles unattended and most certainly don’t go to sleep with one burning.

If you like ritual there are two gorgeous ones here – one is for Autumnal Equinox (Mabon), and the other (if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere) is for Spring Equinox.

So delicious one, that is how to celebrate and harness this potent time of Equinox. I hope you give yourself the gift of doing something to mark this special day.

Enjoy!

It’s a glorious Full Moon in Pisces – 6 easy steps to maximise this energy.

Jenny Heston · 5:34 pm ·

For thousands of years we have been guided by the sun, the moon and the stars. The waxing and waning of the moon has fascinated most humans for centuries and justifiably so! Every full moon is surrounded by legends and lore of its own. Each month is a bit different from the last, and as the year progresses, magical energies change and flow, just like the moon and the tides. This month we celebrate the Full Moon on September 6th at 12:02 PST. Full Moon in Pisces. So not only do we have the moon energy, but there are thematic energies for the months.

The theme of August was RESET and that is exactly what both eclipses did in August, they invited and in the case of the fiery solar eclipse – demanded that you reset, released and renewed yourself, your habits, beliefs – fairly much everything. Lots of people have said that they feel or have felt depleted, zapped of energy, drained if you will but that’s all about the RESET.

However, the theme of September is ADJUSTMENT. You know something is different, and you know things should be different, you can feel it somewhere inside. Yet you might not be able to fully embrace the reality of it all until you adjust on all levels, assimilating and integrating as you go. So in this period of adjustment comes the glorious Full Moon in Pisces. Some may refer to this as the Harvest Moon, but that isn’t quite the case as the Harvest Moon is the one closest to the equinox, so this one is also known as the Corn/Barley Moon.

This Piscean Moon changes the energy up by inviting us to play in the depths and to learn where life is leading us. The energy is more mystical, dreamier, very intuitive and creative – also there is a waft of nostalgia and a yearning, a yearning for the change (even though you might not know exactly what that is) and the adjustment.

This is a glorious Full Moon to acknowledge your courage, expansion, showing up and your own power and ability to change, adjust and be more. It’s also a fabulous Full Moon for connecting with your inner psychic (and yes, you do have one). A Pisces Full Moon helps us to understand our true intentions and illuminates what is really guiding our lives. Under these realizations, we are all going to be able to bloom into our fullest potential, as long as our intentions and motivations are aligned with the highest calling of our souls and we make room to adjust.

How to do this you ask? Ahhhh grasshopper great question. As each Full Moon brings it’s own energy to play here are some recommendations to energise yourself physically, emotionally, spiritually and mentally.

Get out in Nature and gather some energy from the earth, the sun, the sky and the unknown realms and allies around you. This could be taking a walk in a park, sitting by the water, picking flowers from your garden (but remember to ask them for permission and bless them prior to picking them).

Most certainly do the Full Moon forgiveness work.

Release any psychic debris that might be clinging to you and do an energy or aura cleanse, (this isn’t as challenging as it sounds).

Soak in the tub with glorious oils, some flower petals or some Epsom salts (remember to shower them off afterwards). As this is a Piscean Full Moon, water is a great way to celebrate it.

Use the crystals of this moon to help with keeping you grounded, present, releasing and manifesting. Put some garnet, red agate, carnelian and tiger’s eye in your pocket. Or create a small altar (a candle, a sprig from the garden and crystals).

When all this is said and done, be grateful. Do your gratitude work and get clear on what you already have in your life and what you are bringing in.

So there are some easy steps to celebrate, calibrate and enjoy this glorious Piscean Full Moon!

What do you mean I need to cleanse my Aura?

Jenny Heston · 5:05 pm ·

If you subscribe to the theory that everything is energy (which it is), then sometimes we pick up or allow someone else’s energy, or a situation or even our own drama llamas to lurk in our energy field. This in turn slowly builds up and then one morning you get up and you feel out of sorts, a mental fog, drained, disgruntled and to be honest – rather twitchy and bitchy. Perfect time to do an energy cleanse, and I highly suggest you cleanse your living space and your body.

You may be asking – what is an aura and what do you mean I have one? An aura has long been described as an electromagnetic energy field that surrounds people—like an egg-shaped ball of energy that encompasses the body. The aura consists of seven levels/layers/auric bodies, also known as the physical, astral, lower, higher, spiritual, intuitional, and absolute planes. So kind of important to give it a clean now and then as it’s with you all the time. You wouldn’t leave your water bottle, pots/pans or dishes covered in little chunks of gunk – would you?

So let’s look at how to do this. (Honest, it’s not rocket science, but supremely important).

Smudging

Smudging is the burning of sacred herbs and allowing the smoke to cleanse the space, your body and the energy. “Among First Nations people smudging is a sacred ceremony meant to bring about change. Smudging helps to purify our bodies, aura and energy; cleanse ceremonial spaces and personal articles; clears the negative and attracts the positive; is used to help centre and balance body, mind and spirit; and promotes healing. You see, our bodies are not only physical, but vibrate with those invisible silent energies that come when all the elements and their medicines are working together. This is what makes smudging so powerful, using all the elements together and understanding that purpose is our responsibility to self during ceremony.”

Here are some sacred herbs you may want to use:

White Sage: great all purpose cleansing herb to clear away negative energies

Coastal Sage: can help to repair tears in the aura

Palo Santo: great all purpose cleansing herb which helps heal the aura

Thyme: can help to release emotions and traumas from the past

Cedar: can help to release fears and enhance courage

Mugwort: can help repair psychic damage and enhance intuition

You can work with just one herb, or bundle up the ones that appeal to you. Personally, I cleanse myself and my home and family weekly with Sage and then once a month with Palo Santo. I also burn Frankincense, Myrrh and Cedar in dire circumstances. Remember to have something underneath whatever you are burning so that if any ashes or hot coals drop, it’s all safe.

Have a Psychic Bath!

What does this mean? It most certainly doesn’t mean putting yourself in a tub and calling a psychic (although you can if you want to), more a case of pulling yourself a tub, but instead of jumping into it with the intention of just getting clean physically, put things in that help cleanse your energy and set an intention for it. You can use various oils, epsom salts or flowers. Here are a few, but the list is quite extensive.

Rose Petals/Essential Oil: helps to strengthen the aura and promotes self love and healing.

Himalayan Sea Salt: helps to detoxify and restore the aura.

Citrus Based Essential Oils: can help to energise and recharge the aura.

Sandalwood Essential Oil: can repair damage due to psychic attacks and can strengthen the intuition and vibration of the aura.

Lavender/Essential Oil: helps to promote relaxation and calm and restore the energy of the auric field.

Basil/Essential Oil: helps to cleanse negative energy and release the pains of the past.

Sage/Essential Oil: helps to cleanse and protect your aura from negative energy or psychic attacks.

If you are growing herbs, pick them out of your garden, gently crush them between your fingers and pop them in your tub. Immerse, relax and release.

Use Mantra or Sound

What? Do I sing to the top 20 pop hits – again you can but it is more about finding a mantra or using an affirmation that resonates for you. Or if you want to keep it super simple use the sound OM to help re-balance your energy. Chant them, recite them, write them – although there is a lot to be said for speaking or singing mantras or affirmations as the tongue hitting the various areas of the mouth hits a plethora of nerve endings and allows calibration to happen faster.

Often when I am up a mountain with the dogs I am chanting a glorious Kundalini mantra and I pick the one based on what I want to work with at that time. Thank goodness the trees can’t comment on my chanting and I am sure it keeps the bears away!

If you are still wondering why you should cleanse your energy and your aura, think about it a moment. If you are packing “gunk” and it is draining you, how are you shining your glorious light to its fullest potential into the world and attracting to you what you are focusing on?

To cleanse your energy doesn’t need to take hours, but it does take intention and about 15 minutes and believe me you will notice the difference. When I cleanse the house using smudge or salt water the kids will comment when they walk back in that things “feel” different, stronger, cleaner and brighter! Give it a try, what do you have to lose? I would love to know which one you tried and how it made you feel.

Summer Solstice, What it Means and 9 Steps to Engage with It.

Jenny Heston · 4:49 pm ·

What is Summer Solstice you ask and why the heck should I give it any attention? Mighty fine questions, so let’s go for a little explore. On a purely factual basis Summer Solstice (for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere) marks the longest day of the year and the shortest night, it’s the start of the the lazy hazy days of summer. Kids are normally on summer break, families scramble to go on a holiday or camp, and a lot of time is spent soaking up the sun whilst hanging at the beach, playing in the water or hosting a summer bar-b-que. Summer Solstice both ushers in the warmest season and also a gentle reminder that the days are going to get a bit shorter. Even though the days feel longer, more languid and relaxed there is an underlying freneticism of getting outside, celebrating the sun as much as possible, as it will soon be gone. This year Summer Solstice occurs on Tuesday June 20th at 9:24pm PST. So for quite a few of us it means Wednesday.

Okay, so we have the facts, but what does it all mean? Summer Solstice (also known as Litha) is all about abundance, growth, expansion. It’s the celebration of the Sun! Think about it, the farmer plants the seeds in the cool of the Spring in the wet ground and as the Summer Solstice approaches things have sprouted and are reaching up as if they are doing a glorious sun salutation. It’s a time to watch the ripening and fruiting of the plants around us and our ideas. This is a delicious inner fire/power celebration that acknowledges the abundance that grows from tiny seeds.

At Stonehenge, (which was built over 5,000 years ago) the heelstone marks the midsummer sunrise as seen from the centre of the stone circle. In ancient times, the Summer Solstice was a fire-festival of great importance when the burning of balefires ritually strengthened the sun. It was often marked with torchlight processions, by flaming tar barrels or by wheels bound with straw, which were set alight and rolled down steep hillsides. The Norse especially loved lengthy processions and would gather together their animals, families and lighted torches and parade through the countryside to the celebration site.

The use of fires, as well as providing magical aid to the sun, were also used to drive out evil and to bring fertility and prosperity to men, crops and herds. Blazing gorse or furze was carried around cattle to prevent disease and misfortune; while people would dance around the balefires or leap through the flames as a purifying or strengthening rite. The Celts would light balefires all over their lands from sunset the night before Midsummer until sunset the next day. Around these flames the festivities would take place.

In Cornwall up to the mid 18th century the number and appearance of fires seen from any given point was used as a form of divination and used to read the future.

So as we can see, this celebration has been around for years, upon years and has an intensity and a deliciousness about it. So now we have facts, the meaning – how does one celebrate it? There is no right or wrong way by any stretch. However, here are a few simple ideas that aren’t overly complex.

Move your body. Welcome the sun on this longest day with a couple of Sun Salutations. This is a simple Yoga flow that requires you just to be present and go as far as your body will allow you to go. If you are unclear as to what it looks like there are some great beginner versions on line and this will give you a glorious full body stretch (in a gentle way).

Make an altar. Pop some seashells, flowers, fruit and dried herbs on a plate, a tree stump inside or outside and voila, you have created an altar. It doesn’t have to be big, or front and centre in your living room if that makes people around you uncomfie. Your altar could be those cool rocks you picked up over the last year all gorgeously stacked on your kitchen counter.

Eat outdoors. Whether it is your packed lunch at a park, or a family dinner at the picnic table. Eat outside and breathe in the green, the sun, the connection. Look at the plants that are near you whether they are wild rampant buttercups, or a gorgeous rose whose scent wafts to you on the breeze. Realise everything is connected, people, planets, sun and most certainly you.

Take off your shoes. I’m not saying you have to go barefoot for the whole day, but at some point, take off your shoes, let your toes wiggle in the grass or the dirt and just BE for a few moments.

Get your hands dirty. Plant something and if you try to tell me that it is too late I will call bollocks. It’s a great time to pop in more spinach, brussel sprouts and a myriad of other things. So take a moment, grab a pack of seeds and as you pop them into a pot or the ground, set an intention.

Fire time. Have a bonfire, or a little fire, and if not a fire, light a candle. Celebrate the sun by reflecting the sun with fire.

Welcome the water. Get near water, whether it is sitting by a creek, a lake or having a dip in the pool. However, if you are living in a desert this could be a tad tricky, so in that case just pour some water into a little bowl and have it near your fire/candle.

Reset. This is a gorgeous time to use the energy of the Summer Solstice to burn away anything (and I mean anything) that no longer is who you are, or is serving your highest good. One year I had a photo of someone who had been incredibly toxic in my life, but still pulled the strings. So I took the photo, said a blessing, dug a hole and popped the photo in. I then lit a fire and felt tons better!

Community. Invite a friend or 15 to celebrate with you. This is a fun celebration and festival and a pivotal time in the year. Invite friends over and have a potluck, a fire, a delightful natter, play music and celebrate your connection with each other.

There you go. You have now celebrated the Summer Solstice. How did it feel?

Wishing you glorious fires, connection, abundance and most of all fun!

Thoughts

jennyheston

Release Anxiety And Claim Your Power