Fall has always been special to me. Gatherings of friends and family, the warmth of colors in brown's, red's, orange's, and gold's, and Holiday's that celebrate darkness enchantment, and the Winter's Solstice to come... ::FALL EQUINOX:: SEPT 23 Also known as Mabon, occurs in the middle of September. It is the main harvest festival of the Wiccan calendar and marks the beginning of Autumn. The Goddess manifests in Her Bountiful Mother aspects. The God emerges as the Corn King and Harvest Lord. Colors are Orange, Dark Red, Yellow, Indigo, and Brown. It is the festival of thanksgiving. We share together and celebrate in Thanksgiving. ::Halloween:: OCTOBER 31 Samhain, popularly known as Halloween, occurs in late October and early November. For most Wiccan practitioners, this is the New Year, and a time for letting go of the old and looking ahead to the new. It marks the end of the harvest season. Since ancient times, Pagans have paid their respects to departed loved ones, ancestors, and guides in the Spirit World at Samhain. The Goddess manifests as the Crone and the God as the Horned Hunter and Lord of Death. Sacred colors are Black and Orange. It is the festival of endings and transformation. ::Fall Celebration Links:: Witch on the Go :: Celebrating Circles ::Halloween Links, Stories, and Poetry:: Halloween Spooky Stories :: Halloween Stories for and by Kids :: Kids Domain Halloween Stories ::CELEBRATIONS:: Fall Equinox The Fall Equinox is celebrated in the oldest forest, the Oaks of Beginning Earth. This five-day celebration begins with the Feast of Bounty. Rich food and wine are brought forth, and toasts of thanks are proposed for the provisions of the year. The feast can last for several days, as each fey in attendance is expected to make a toast. While the Queen attends the festival, she is not the central focus. The hunt, held on the day of the equinox, is the premier gala event. Each year a new quarry is chosen and armed with certain magical charms and disguises. Hunting parties of all sizes ride in pursuit. The queen presents a horn of bounty to the fey who captures and returns the prey. Horn of Bounty: A horn of bounty greatly resembles a cornucopia. Once per day, the user can endeavor to play the horn for 10 minutes and make a Perform (trumpet) check DC 15. If successful, the horn produces the effects of the heroes' feast spell. Maiden Dreamers Halloween Page ::Poetry:: Falls' Leaves Those Fall leaves of Brown and Red and Gold I see them everywhere and they crunch beneath my feet They bring me delight as I fall in their piles on the ground I laugh as they bring out the child in me. As the trees grow bare and the leaves are racked up and thrown away I think how sadly I will miss those wonderful delights In those Fall Leaves. ©Jari Graham 2003 Autumn Breezes Autumn Breezes whisper in my ear "The end is near, winter soon will be here." As the trees golden and brown grow bare and the leaves are all bundled we begin to feel that Autumn is near. Children laughing and bundled with care with crisp breezes howling through the air. As the darkness creeps the animals burrow in for winter will soon be here. With Harvest Celebrations and Gatherings, children dressed for O Hallows Eve The Autumn wind still whispers to me "The end is near, winter soon will be here." As the nights grow longer and darkness seems everywhere Oh How I love Autumn Breezes now that they are here As Autumn prepares to sleep and winter blankets us with winters delight We await next years Autumn Breezes throughout the year. ©Jari Graham Autumn Fae's Autumn Fae's flutter here and about in the autumn breeze. They bring colors of gold and brown to the autumn days They tickle our faces with autumn warmth and delight us with crisp autumn nights They prepare us for the winter season by delighting us one last time with Autumn's farewell golden splashes. The howling winds and the bare trees bring about the end of Autumn's own Delights. As Autumn's Fae's are soon to be forgotten until summer ends and Autumn once again brings about her glorious majesty ©Jari Graham ::Autumn Fairies:: Thank You LadyAutumn for this wonderful award! Click on the award to go see Lady Autumn's Autumn Twilight Page Maiden Dreamers Halloween Page->Here Background Set created by ©Dreamers Design 2003 Beautiful Artwork of Jessica Galbreth can be found here