Breathe it all in slow

Autumn is my favorite time of year (if only winter weren't lurking around the corner!) We've been busy, busy wrapping up the end of summer and birthday season, but I think we're just starting to fall into a routine - thanks in part to the upcoming cozy season, I think!

I have a couple things I want to share this week, but for now - in honor of the Autumn equinox - some fall inspirations.

"A few days ago I walked along the edge of the lake and was treated to the crunch and rustle of leaves with each step I made. The acoustics of this season are different and all sounds, no matter how hushed, are as crisp as autumn air."
- Eric Sloane

"Autumn is the eternal corrective. It is ripeness and color and a time of maturity;
but it is also breadth, and depth, and distance. What man can stand with autumn
on a hilltop and fail to see the span of his world and the meaning of the rolling
hills that reach to the far horizon?
- Hal Borland

"Come said the wind to
the leaves one day,
Come o're the meadows
and we will play.
Put on your dresses
scarlet and gold,
For summer is gone
and the days grow cold."
- A Children's Song of the 1880's

"Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn."
- Elizabeth Lawrence




"As earth's treasures have all been blessed
And gnarled roots compel us to our quest
Gather, well, the harvest.
May autumn's bounty fill and nurture you!"




How are you planning on celebrating the equinox? Are you planning on celebrating?

We finished and found chairs for our outdoor table - if the rain stops (!) We'll eat out there - with a mostly seasonal local dinner, and perhaps some homemade wine for the adults.

We don't pray but here's a lovely (pagan) prayer I found:

Mabon Balance Prayer

Equal hours of light and darkness
we celebrate the balance of Mabon
and ask the gods to bless us.
For all that is bad, there is good.
For that which is despair, there is hope.
For the moments of pain, there are moments of love.
For all that falls, there is the chance to rise again.
May we find balance in our lives
as we find it in our hearts.

I don't follow any religion or craft - but I find myself often interested in wiccan and pagan lore - for the close affinity to nature.

What is Mabon?

Mabon, (pronounced MAY-bun, MAY-bone, MAH-boon, or MAH-bawn) is the Autumn Equinox. The Autumn Equinox divides the day and night equally, and we all take a moment to pay our respects to the impending dark. We also give thanks to the waning sunlight, as we store our harvest of this year's crops. The Druids call this celebration, Mea'n Fo'mhair, and honor the The Green Man, the God of the Forest, by offering libations to trees. Offerings of ciders, wines, herbs and fertilizer are appropriate at this time. Wiccans celebrate the aging Goddess as she passes from Mother to Crone, and her consort the God as he prepares for death and re-birth.

Information found here

And some recipes - should you decide to celebrate

Spiced Apple Cider

1 gallon naturally sweet apple cider

1 cup brown sugar

4 cinnamon sticks, broken in half

1 Tablespoon whole cloves

1 Tablespoon whole allspice

1/2 teaspoon mace (optional)

Tie cinnamon, cloves, allspice and mace together in cheesecloth or use a coffee filter tied with string. Combine cider and brown sugar in a large pot. Add spices. Bring mixture to a slow boil. Then turn heat down and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes. Remove spice bag from pot. Serve hot cider in mugs. Spiced Apple Cider may be kept warm in a crock-pot (slow cooker) on low setting. Yield 18 servings

Dark Mother Bread - Mabon Honey Wheat Bread

Serve warm with herbed oils for dipping, or with a big scoop of apple butter

Make this either in your bread machine, or by kneading it by hand.

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 C. warm water
• 1 Tbs. active dry yeast
• 1/3 C. honey
• 3 C. whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 C. vegetable oil
• 2 Tbs. butter
• 4 C. all purpose baking flour

Preparation:

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add honey and mix well.

Stir in the whole wheat flour, salt, vegetable oil, and butter and mix until a stiff dough has formed. Gradually work the all-purpose flour into the mix, one cup at a time.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured countertop, and knead for about fifteen minutes. When it reaches the point where it's sort of elastic, shape it into a ball and place it into an oiled bowl. Cover with a warm, damp cloth, and allow to sit and rise until it's doubled in size -- usually about 45 minutes.

Punch the dough down and cut in half, so you can make two loaves of bread. Place each half in a greased loaf pan, and allow to rise. Once the dough has risen an inch or two above the top of the loaf pan, pop them in the oven. Bake at 375 for half an hour, or until golden brown at the top.

When you remove the loaves from the oven, allow to cool for about fifteen minutes before removing from the pan. If you like, brush some melted butter over the top of the hot loaves, to add a pretty golden glaze to them.

Note - If you're doing this in a bread machine, remember, the recipes makes two loaves. Halve everything if you're allowing the machine to do the mixing. If you hand mix it, you can still drop the single-loaf balls of dough into the machine to bake.

no images belong to me, they were all found on the inspiration boards on tumblr.