Cat’s Morning Bits for May 1, 2019
Good Morning Beautiful Souls, grab a cup of your favorite morning brew and start things off with “Today’s Inspirations”. I hope you find something here that will make you feel good or help you on your path today.
Blessings, Cat
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‘But I must gather knots of flowers,
And buds and garlands gay,
For I’m to be Queen o’ the May, mother,
I’m to be Queen o’ the May.’
– Alfred Lord Tennyson
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The Beltane bonfires were lit as a symbol of the return of the sun for the summer half of the year. Nine sacred woods were used to start the fires and each wood has its own magickal properties. The names of the wood to be used appears in the long versions of the Witches Rede, while the shorter versions contain the first sentence.
“Nine woods in the Cauldron go, burn them fast and burn them slow.
Birch wood in the fire goes to represent what the Lady knows.
Oak in the forest, towers with might in the fire it brings the God’s insight.
Rowan is a tree of power causing life and magick to flower.
Willows at the waterside stand ready to help us to the Summerland.
Hawthorn is burned to purify and to draw faerie to your eye.
Hazel-the tree of wisdom and learning- adds its strength to the bright fire burning.
White are the flowers of Apple tree that brings us fruits of fertility.
Grapes grow upon the vine giving us both joy and wine.
Fir does mark the evergreen to represent immortality seen.
But – Elder is the Lady’s tree burn it not or cursed you’ll be.”
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ThoughtCo: Faerie Lore: The Fae at Beltane
For many Pagans, Beltane is traditionally a time when the veil between our world and that of the Fae is thin. In most European folktales, the Fae kept to themselves unless they wanted something from their human neighbors. It wasn’t uncommon for a tale to relate the story of a human being who got too daring with the Fae–and ultimately paid their price for his or her curiosity!
https://www.learnreligions.com/lore-about-fae-at-beltane-2561643
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MBG: Monthly Horoscope: The Vibe Of This May? Chill & Surrender To Divine Timing
Finally—a bit of solid ground beneath our feet? May’s cosmic lineup is blessedly uneventful—and it falls against the backdrop of Taurus season, weighing our collective anchor even more. As the Sun makes its annual rounds through the earthy, steadfast sign until May 21, take the opportunity to plant deep roots and let your ideas gain traction
https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/may-2019-your-monthly-horoscope-from-the-astrotwins
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Daily Good: All My Best Words Were Hers: A Tribute to Ursula Le Guin
The impact of literature and specifically, an author, on a person can be “unfathomable.” In this tender tribute, Isaac Yuen recounts the many ways Ursula K. Le Guin influenced his life and his writing. He admits he is “only a fan.” He confesses his inadequacy in expressing how her work guides his: “I write about how reading her words transported me to strange worlds and into new souls, how that sparked my own journeys as a reader and a writer. The sentiment is trite. I steal her own words to say what she already knows. I cannot say what I mean. I cannot find the way.” And yet, he does. With profound love, he shares the legacy she leaves for him and the world
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Witchipedia: May in Myth and Magic
To maintain a youthful appearance and enhance your beauty, wash your face in the dew you collect on the morning of the first of May.
Marry in May, you’ll rue the day.
It is considered very bad luck to get married in May; perhaps because it is considered by some to be the wedding month of the God and Goddess and it would be very rude to upstage them.
Wash a blanket in May, you’ll wash a dear one away
It is bad luck to wash your blankets in May or to buy a new broom.
According to one superstition, children born this month will be sickly all their lives and cats born this month won’t catch mice, but might bring snakes into the house.
Good weather in May is not necessarily a good thing.
A wet May brings a big load of hay.
A cold May is kindly and fills the barn finely.
Mist in May and heat in June makes harvest come right soon
http://www.witchipedia.com/month:may
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MNN: What to see in the night sky in May
Meteor showers, the Flower Moon and more reasons to look up
That giant sigh you just heard? The collective relief of the Northern Hemisphere that spring with all its beauty, sounds and smells is finally here. It’s also the perfect time for stargazers to throw on little more than a sweatshirt and enjoy warmer evenings of looking up into the heavens.
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EarthSky News: Star-hop to the Hunting Dogs
Tonight, find the Hunting Dogs. The chart above looks directly overhead at nightfall or early evening in May, as seen from a mid-latitude in the N. Hemisphere. It’s as if we’re viewing the sky from the comfort of a reclining lawn chair, with our feet pointing southward. The constellation Leo the Lion stands high in the southern sky, while the upside-down Big Dipper is high in the north. Notice the Big Dipper and Leo. You can use them to star-hop to to the constellation Canes Venatici, the Hunting Dogs.
https://earthsky.org/tonight/star-hop-to-canes-venatici-the-hunting-dogs
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Patheos-Pagan: Beltane Flowers: A Dish For Your Beltane Potluck
So the flowers I’m talking about here are cauliflowers. I suppose you could make a garland to wear on your head of cauliflowers. It seems a bit excessive, maybe even dangerous. I’m suggesting you make a delicious gratin and take it to a Beltane potluck to share with friends and loved ones. Of course, you can make this on any old Tuesday afternoon as well and not share it with anyone.
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thewitchesnextdoor/2019/04/beltane-potluck/
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Inner Journey:
OPEN TO THE NEW
“All the people we call ‘geniuses’ are men and women who somehow escaped having to put that curious, wondering child in themselves to sleep.”
— Barbara Sher
How willing are you to learn something new?
How open are you to new perspectives?
Only when we’re open can we really hear what’s being said or really see what’s happening or really experience the moment.
Openness demands that we be willing to move to places we’ve never been before. It asks us to continually challenge the foundations of our belief systems so we can test out new ideas. And to do that, we need to accept insecurity.
“The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.”
— Alvin Toffler
higherawareness.com
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A Note from the Universe
The reason there are so many people in the world is so that each of you might at least find a few of them to love.
And ye shall be transformed,
The Universe
tut.com
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The Agora: Reflections in Nature: Spring Musings
Part of the path of being a witch for me is following the changing of the seasons. As the earth this year comes to life around us, I am struck by the feelings it generates within. Spring is not merely the greening of the year and the welcoming of warmer days. It is nature fighting to bring forth new life, new beginnings, but also the death of winter and those things that have ended.
https://www.patheos.com/blogs/agora/2019/04/reflections-in-nature-spring-musings/
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Magical Correspondences for Wednesday
Intentions:Rules healings, the mind, Communication, Divination, Writing, Knowledge, Business Transactions, Debt, Fear,Loss, Travel and Money Matters, Addictions, Young People, Messages, Perception, Self Expression.
Incense: Jasmine, Lavender, Sweet Pea, Cinnamon, Cinquefoil
Planet: Mercury and Chiron (though this is a moon of Pluto)
Sign: Virgo
Angel: Raphael
Colors: Orange, Light Blue, Grey, Yellow and, Opalescent colors and Violet
Herbs/Plants: Fern, Lavendar, Hazel, Cherry, Periwinkle
Stones: Aventurine, Bloodstone, Hematite, Moss Agate and Sodalite
Oil: (Mercury) Benzoin, Clary Sage, Eucalytus, Lavender
Goddesses: Aset [Isis], Demeter, Ceres, Spider Woman, Bona Dea, Oya,
Devi-Kali, Hella, Rhiannon, Coatlique, Maman Brigette, Sekhmet, Het Heret
[Hathor]
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Daily Wisdom
May 1, 2019
Understanding
“In what we really understand, we reason but little.”
-William Hazlitt (1778-1830)
True understanding is knowingness. We don’t have to be able to put it into words, we just know. In our heart, in our mind, in our very being, some things just ARE, and we understand. It’s kind of like how we can feel when someone loves us. We know it without that person having to say it. We don’t have to think about it and analyze the situation, there is just this understanding that is there. That same understanding, that same knowingness, comes with the presence of Spirit, omnipotent and omnipresent.
-Lissa Coffey
coffeytalk.com
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The Wild Hunt: Beltane’s Past in Print
MIAMI (TWH) – Referenced in William Bells’s (1856) book, “On the English nomenclature of the days of the week,” John Jamieson’s Dictionary of the Scottish Language mentions a Gaelic rhyming proverb:
Woe to the mother of a magician’s son,
When the Beltaine happens on a Sunday.
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About Cat’s Morning Bits: These daily post are reblogged from various email newsletters that I receive each day.
I invite you to check out my websites!
The Desert Path: The dusty ramblings of a desert pagan. https://thedesertpath.com/
Cat’s Treasure Trove …. an eclectic collection of jewelry & gifts! https://thedesertpath.com
Sacred Spirals (the place where all paths meet)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/SacredSpirals/
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