Dear Reader,

In 2018, I began a quiet devotion: to follow the year, season by season, writing a monthly poem for each turning of the Wheel. To deepen my understanding of Mother Nature’s rhythms and cycles, I chose one ancient woodland and returned again and again – sometimes fortnightly, sometimes weekly – watching for the smallest signs of change.

As I walked, I began to feel the year’s unfolding as a personal rite of passage – from bud to leaf to flower, from Maiden to Mother to Crone. Lin’s image of one of the guardian oaks, with me standing beside Her with my big ole walking stick, became the front cover of my second poetry collection – a quiet testament to that year of deep listening.

Here’s September, one of the poems born from that journey.

September

As the last summer rose scatters,
the warm autumn breeze 
tastes of apple and blackberry pie,
bounty from the Great Mother
who has given Her body willingly.
Drunken bees cling
to over-ripe, succulent pears,
feasting as the gathering begins.

For trees thirsting is almost over,
as crowns begin to thin out
and the rain and wind returns, 
unloved by departing swallows
who murmur as they leave. 
Like a second sun,
the harvest moon shines bright
in September’s dark skies.

In this season of fruiting ripeness, 
may we manifest abundance, 
share our hearts with others
whilst acorns begin to fall	
and yellow leaves drift on by.
In this month of plenty,
we offer the Great Mother
sweet blessings as summer fades.

Turning towards mellow Mabon,
with its misty mornings 
and clear nights of starlight,
we gather in soft fruit and grain
for the winter yet to come.
As shadows dance in sunlight
and the earth is still warm,
let us savour September’s song.

For those who walk with the seasons, September can be found sleeping and dreaming in my second poetry collection The Shepherd’s Daughter on p. 152, nestled within the chapter “Poetry of the Year”.

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Yours in words, Deborah

If my words strike a chord and you feel inspired to dive deeper into my poetry or explore my essays on Jungian thought, I invite you to visit: The Liberated Sheep