restless in the studio

These days I seem to be doing everything except what I want to be doing... creating! If you’re on my email list or follow me on IG, you’ll already know I added several Crow pendants to the shop recently. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes boring technical stuff to do regarding preparing the emails, editing photos, IG posts etc., and it requires a lot of precious time. And then there’s the garden...

Over the past couple of years, I’ve gotten back into my herbal endeavors from two decades ago, and I have a myriad of herbs growing in pots on my deck, as well as four tomato plants. They all require daily watering and usually a little harvesting. The basil is right now screaming to be picked again and turned into pesto. The St. John’s Wort is ready to be harvested and made into an oil which I will then use to make healing salves. I’ve been wildcrafting mugwort to make into smoke sticks and fiercely protecting a small patch that graciously appeared right here on our property.

The tomatoes need constant vigilance to rid them of hornworms... nasty little buggers that chomp right through the leaves and, recently, the lovely baby tomatoes on my cherry tomato plant. The hornworms can grow quite large. Besides a dozen or so smaller culprits, I removed two three-inch-long caterpillars over the past two days and although they’re sorta creepy, .. okay, they’re REALLY creepy… they do eventually turn into Hummingbird moths (aka, Hawk Moths, and they're really cool!), so they are carefully removed and relocated far from my plants.

In researching ideas for this month’s blog post, I came across August Eve, also called Lammas or Lughnasadh, which was historically celebrated by pagans and druids. It is one of the Wiccan Sabbats and is the first celebration of the harvest. The wheat harvest (although this could be other grains depending on geographical location) was traditionally celebrated in Europe by baking loaves of wheat bread, but honestly, I’ve got enough on my plate right now. I think I’ll just be happy to know there’s a special occasion I can hold in my mind for all of the harvesting chores I’m performing at the moment.

Perhaps I’ll light a candle on the 1st of August and, if time permits, bake some peanut butter oatmeal cookies as my nod to the holiday. I do love following the seasonal celebrations as they pertain to the cycles of nature, and especially appreciate an uncommercialized holiday requiring no gifts or presents. It’s a small pause with a quiet thank you to Mother Earth for all of her blessings and provides a deeper connection with the natural rhythms of the year.
 
… and it’s a great excuse for cookies! 😉