Color of the day: Green
Incense of the day: Jasmine

Samhain is only ten days away, and so it is time to start decorating. I love decorating for this day. You would, if you visited, find bats, Witches, skeletons, scarecrows, and ghosts peeking out of every pot, pan, bowl, closet, drawer, and bookshelf in the house. One of my favorite traditions at this time of year is to carve pumpkins. Sometimes I carve one large pumpkin. But more often, I will carve three smaller pumpkins, each with a different expression. Plenty of Halloween books, magazines, and articles offer ideas for carving methods and creative designs. I like to turn my carving into a ritual. I gather all my carving tools, my pumpkins, and my ritual tools. I cast a circle and ask angels of creativity for inspiration. Sometimes, I have designs worked out on paper ahead of time. Most often, I take the advice of sculptors: They let what is inside the stone or clay come out. In other words, I let the spirit of the pumpkin express itself. It’s not easy, as words are more natural to me than artwork. But it is always rewarding. The innards become pumpkin pies or pumpkin cookies. Some of the seeds are toasted, and some of the seeds are given as offerings to the spirit of pumpkin and to the angels. Every year’s pumpkins are different, because the spirit of each pumpkin is unique. Each pumpkin is a living being. The merry expressions lit by candlelight fill my home with joy and blessings.

By: Cerridwen Iris Shea