Blessed Samhain.

Right about now, all of the trick-or-treaters are sitting in the middle of their floors, their loot spread out around them. Mischief-makers are out smashing pumpkins or twirling toilet paper, and for others, this is just another night.

For pagans, Samhain marks the end of one cycle of the Wheel's turning, and the beginning of another. As surely as Life begins, Death will follow it. It is a natural, inevitable part of the cycle, and one that we need to embrace with as much acceptance as we do the warmth of the Sun at Litha.

I have taken some time tonight to reflect on the previous year, and that one still to come. I have spread my cards and reflected upon them, and recorded them so that I can look back on them as the year progresses. And I have tried to convince myself that the impending darkness is what makes the Spring seem so bright.

This new year brings new beginnings. I have, after years of being in a solitary broom closet, become part of a circle. I am no longer all alone. The three of us, the Queens of Cups (Maiden, Mother, and Crone) will celebrate the Mourning Moon, together for the first time, in a couple of weeks. I will call the quarters. I am excited and nervous and thrilled. And, most of all, I am happy.

Is it any wonder that the card that came up for November was The Fool (0)?

My candle is burning low now, and my feline familiar is insisting on being let into the room with me. I don't remember him being quite this vocal before. (He must know I'm practicing some magic without him. I just didn't want him to singe his whiskers!)

May this Sabbat bring you many blessings as we reflect upon and remember those who have come before us.