Welcome to November, and a new feature! Each month, I’ll be doing a Monthly Overview. This draw is designed as an overview/preview of the month—what to be aware of as you move into and through the month.

With two Major Arcana cards, expect significant shifts on multiple levels in November.

The Giants’ Tarot, Raven Kaldera

Active Influence: The Nornir/Wheel of Fortune. Much of what is happening is beyond your control, or even your influence. That doesn’t mean you get to sit by and wait for things to happen; it means that this is the time for you to do your part and prepare for the changes to come. The Universe is moving and changing; you need to put your house in order (literally and figuratively) and get ready for the new circumstances. You are not without power in these situations; while you can’t control what is happening, you can choose how you deal with what comes your way. This is not the time to crumple—this is the time to make decisions and take action.

Hidden Influence: Hela/Death. Just in case you missed it, you’re not in control—in this case, what is ending may not be your choice, and the manner of the conclusion may not be to your liking. But it is happening, and you need to truly detach from it, release, relinquish. Those situations and relationships are not serving your highest good, and you need to clear space for people and places that are healthier and more supportive. It’s important to mourn the loss, but don’t get so caught up in mourning what is lost that you miss the new opportunities coming your way.

Rune: Yr/Focus. With so much going on, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and distracted. Do what you need to do to maintain focus on what’s truly important: meditate, pray, exercise, create, be with loved ones, sing, laugh, dance, eat delicious food—all of the things which bring joy to your life and peace to your heart. There is a great deal to be done, but you do not have to work every minute. Realistically, you can’t work every minute; you need rest and re-creation in order to do your best work. Do the appointed thing at the appointed time, and make sure that time includes time for joy and love.

Significant changes are coming, and it’s up to you how to deal with them. Take care of yourself and those around you; whatever comes, it’s easier to deal with as a family, tribe, or community.

This month’s community altar is dedicated to the Goddess Hel, and to the Ancestors.

Community Altar October 2018 – Hel and The Ancestors

This month’s altar is simple, and yet rich with symbols. The flower bouquet is half carnations (flowers of springtime) and half mums (flowers of autumn, traditionally associated with death), reflecting the two halves of Hel’s body, and the realities of our human lives: we are dying every moment we live, and death becomes the beginning a new life.

The alabaster candle holder on the left is the Ancestor Candle that is on each Community Altar; the holder on the right is the Community Candle that is on each Community Altar.

The glass of water and the plate holding the offering are from my grandmother’s Blue Willow china, which recently came to me, 18 years after her death. Some of the pieces are over 100 years old, and all have deep connections to family; these were the breakfast dishes used daily to feed the family around the large table in the dining room every day.

The plate holds a piece of bread, on which are an offering of salt and an offering of sugar. Salt is essential for life, and sugar makes life sweet.

The image of Hel is by Ellen Lorenzi-Prince; it’s the Two of Earth card from her amazing Dark Goddess Tarot. As the Wheel of the Year turns, we in the Northern Hemisphere see the last of the harvest and the fields going dormant for winter; those in the Southern Hemisphere see the first signs of spring and the new life beginning after the temporary barrenness and death of winter. Hel’s body, half living and half dead, exemplifies this both/and nature of our being and of life.

Prayer to Hel and to the Ancestors

Hail, Hel!
Quiet Queen of Helheim,
Tranquil Lady of the Dead.
I thank You for Your gentle care
of my Beloved Dead.
May they be at peace in Your realm,
Free of the cares of mortal life,
Resting, healing, being made whole
In Your loving care.

Hail the Ancestors, Beloved Dead!
Kin of body,
Kin of mind,
Kin of heart,
Kin of soul.
I know your names, and speak them with love;
Or, if unnamed, honor you as “Teacher” and “Guide”.

I know you by your words,
The truths and tales
Which survive the years.

I know you by your deeds,
Your daily work of living,
Your life’s work of giving.

Inspired by you,
I create my life
Day by day,
Word by word,
Deed by deed.

I move through my day in strength and grace
And make the world a better place
For now, and for those who will come after.

Here are this week’s “oooh” items for the Book List, thanks to The Medieval Magazine:

Medieval Sensibilities: A History of Emotions in the Middle Ages, By Damien Boquet and Piroska Nagy, translated by Robert Shaw
Polity Press, ISBN: 978-1-5095-1465-6

Also:

Portraits of Medieval Eastern Europe, 900-1400, Edited by Donald Ostroski and Christian Raffensperger
Routledge, ISBN: 978-1-138-70120-5

And, lastly (oh, who am I kidding—there is no “last” on the book list):

The Cambridge History of Ireland, Volume 1: 600-1550, Edited by Brendan Smith
Cambridge University Press, ISBN:978-107-11067-0

A Gift
~ Amy Lowell

See! I give myself to you, Beloved!
My words are little jars
For you to take and put upon a shelf.
Their shapes are quaint and beautiful,
And they have many pleasant colours and lusters
To recommend them.
Also the scent from them fills the room
With sweetness of flowers and crushed grasses.

When I shall have given you the last one,
You will have the whole of me,
But I shall be dead.