Mabon 2011

The other night I had a fantastic end of summer "celebration" with my daughter...I even managed to take a few pictures to celebrate.  We have the privilege to live close to an abandoned amusement park...very cool in its own right, and even better that I had actually spent many a pleasant summer day there when I was a kid.  My daughter recently got into checking out abandoned amusement parks online...so i thought bringing her to Rocky Point would be a very cool adventure.  Not that we had to break in or anything, they've recently reopened a small section of the park complete with walking path that takes you on a fantastic stroll by the shore line. 

We wandered around and looked at old things, took pictures of what was left to compare with pictures from its heyday online and we collected rocks and seashells while we stuck our toes in the water and "frolicked" on the beach. It was a little sad to see what had become of the midway and the giant dinner hall and it seemed an appropriate symbolic good bye to summer, as it's now time to say good bye to the carefree days and long nights of summer. 

Later we drove to the light house and pretended we were being sneaky as we walked up the giant gates with the stop signs and homeland security signs to get a better look, and then ended our night sitting on a bench eating dough boys and cheese fries over looking the bay.  We both agreed that our summer now felt complete and our sense of well being was uplifted after spending that time together.  It's a wonderful memory that we'll both cherish.

Tonight I have a small ritual planned and then we'll bury our protective witch bottle at the end of the driveway...it seems it has finally stopped bubbling! Our feast was last Sunday, and in retrospect it was definitely a good idea since my husband has worked every night this week, and is working both tonight and tomorrow night...so our last meal as a whole family was a good one.  Tonight's meal will be somewhat suspect, as are most of them when its just the girls home alone...i always feel a little bad cooking a whole meal when the husband isn't there with us.

I feel like the whole week has been filled with little symbolisms...most of the plants have been brought inside, since the frost threatens here and there....not so much now, of course, its muggy and gross right now...but last week it was almost there! I've been doing fall cleaning and washing the thick blankets for our beds and the warmer jackets...I think one of the reasons I do like fall so much is the sense of getting ready to "winter in" makes me appreciate my home and what I have so much more. To think that there are people who aren't as  fortunate as I to have a place to winter in is a little heart breaking.  This is just one of the many things that I am thankful for, all which will be mentioned in my ritual tonight.  Its funny how many things you can come up with when you sit down and make a thankful list for yourself.