I’ve noticed a significant decrease in temperature recently. There have been reports of frost in the Adirondacks, and the chilly nights have already started to impact my garden. Some of the less cold-tolerant plants are starting to wilt or die back. An Cailleach is waking up, and as much as I love autumn, it means that many of our Nature Spirit allies who bless us with food, healing, and other creature comforts are going to go back into the Earth Mother for awhile.
Each year I say I’m going to prepare more than the year before, and I never do quite as much as I hope. I always have grand plans of stuffing my cupboards with canned or dehydrated veggies and fruit. One of these days, that will happen, but it won’t be this year. However, just as I learn more about gardening each year, I also learn something new when it comes to preserving the harvest and preparing for the cold season.
This autumn, I’m trying to save a few little things here and there. For example, I forage for useful herbs as I play with Bee around the house. As I do this, she is also learning about the world around her. And even though I just haven’t had the time to can lots of fruits and veggies, I may make bigger batches while preparing our daily meals, then freeze some for later. Today I made apple pie and prepared twice as much filling as I needed. Just a little extra effort will make for a sweet reward on a cold, winter day.
As I prepare for the winter in these small ways, I reflect on my gratitude for the blessings of the Three Kindreds. The Nature Spirits have given me so much in the form of food, shelter, and healing herbs throughout the green season. In gardening, foraging, and preserving, I am calling on age-old knowledge passed down from my Ancestors. I give gratitude to Airmed for herbs in my garden and to Brighid for the transformative power of the hearth fire as I cook and preserve. I thank An Dagda for the abundance we have. I suppose I could even thank An Cailleach for the chill in my freezer! (Hmmm… never thought of that before…)
Author M. A. Phillips 