The Spring Equinox, the Crow Moon, and the Advent of Spring: Delivery 2

Welcome to the second delivery from the Witch\’s Garden. Under the Crow Moon, your subscription will contain items related to the Spring Equinox, Elemental Magic, and a little crow symbolism. Welcome to the first herbs and flowers of spring in west Tennessee. Let\’s explore!

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The Spring Equinox

Our second stop on the Wheel of the Year, the Spring Equinox has been acknowledged by cultures, traditions, and religions the world over. The Spring and Fall Equinoxes, or \”Cross Quarters\”, are midway between the Summer and Winter Solstices. They\’re times of seasonal shifting, when energies are in flux and the world around us is changing. This is a time for cleaning and clearing, when physical, mental, and spiritual clutter can blow away on the brisk winds of spring.

Self Care and Magick – Witch, Know Thyself. Witch, Heal Thyself.

For spellwork, Esbats, and Sabbat celebrations, a centering of self is vital. If we can\’t find our center, if we can\’t relax, release, and be comfortable within our own skin, how can we know what we as individuals really want? I\’m not speaking here of surface desires. Our surface, animalian desires might say \”ooh, there\’s cake, and cake is good, so I want cake\” – but \”Hmm, I\’ve had high blood pressure lately. Is the taste of that cake worth the way I\’ll feel later?\” If we\’ve had good sleep, are reasonably relaxed and in touch with our internal compass, we\’re more likely to choose from our center, rather than our taste buds.

Self care comes in many forms. Caring for the body has power. Caring for the spirit has power. Caring for the environment – the home, the workspace, the world around us – has power. Caring for the people and the relationships that bless our lives has power. I can\’t tell you how best to care for your spirit or your relationships – that\’s an individual path we each must walk. You also know best how to care for your own environment. But I can help care for the body, and provide relaxing tools to help you center down and prepare for meditation or for ritual. You\’ll find a few of these in the box this month.

The Crow Moon

In our area, the crows are active and in our area during this moon. We hear their calls in the trees and see them in our skies. Crows are smart and loyal, often staying with the same mate for life and remembering the faces of humans who have helped or harmed them in the past… And not only remembering their faces, but passing that knowledge on through their communities and family lines.

They\’re also carrion feeders – scavengers of the dead. They help keep our environment clean and free of disease-causing detritus. They eat a wide range of foods, from peanuts to flesh. They\’re adaptable and mischievous, and have their own sense of humor. Changeable as the oncoming spring weather, collectors of shiny things, and voracious learners, they remind many witches of ourselves. We can learn from crows, their ways of being in the world and the rich symbolism that follows them.

Many Native American groups of eastern North America also refer to the February full moon as the Worm Moon, when the earth begins to thaw, when earthworms start to move about and aerate the soil again – a sign of Earth\’s fertility awakening.

The Celtic Tree Calendar

A tradition of some Celtic pagan paths, most likely arising in the 1800s but based on the historically ancient ogham writing system, relates a tree species to each lunar month. This month\’s lunar correspondence is with the Ash. Ash trees are protective personalities, an incredibly strong and dense wood with a clean, fine grain, wonderful for woodworking (with the right tools) and for wand making. White Ash grows well in Tennessee, a slow-growing and long-lived member of groves and woodlands, with a beautiful profile of light and dark grain intertwined.

Elemental Correspondences and the Pentagram/Pentacle

A pentagram is a five-pointed star; a pentacle, a five-pointed star within a circle. Both are powerful symbols in multiple mystery and pagan traditions, usually symbols for the four classical elements intertwined with one another and with Spirit or Ether. those four elements are Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. You\’ll find an item representative of each element in your box.

Your Items

So what\’s in the box?

clockwise from top: Springwater; water decoction of dead nettle, chickweed, henbit, and  violet; bath bombs; goat\’s milk soap; ash wood and tinned copper \”coin\”, juniper and dried herb smudge wand; juniper oil; daffodils. In the middle, juniper/lemon incense blend; dried henbit in clear plastic; dried dead nettle in silver plastic. Above, in paper envelopes, fresh dead nettle, chickweed, and henbit.

Additions, not pictured – flowering Quince branch and baby spring garlic.

Happy Spring Equinox, beloveds. May the Crow Moon

• Decoction of chickweed, purple dead nettle, and henbit – FOR SKIN AND HAIR CARE, DO NOT DRINK – contains citric acid for preserving properties, but store in the refrigerator for longer shelf life.
• Juniper Infused Oil mixed Olive and Avocado Oil for skin care – keep refrigerated after pickup.
• Chickweed Infused Olive Oil
• Purple Dead Nettle Infused Olive Oil
• Purple Dead Nettle – dry for mailers, fresh for local pickup.
• Henbit – dry for mailers, fresh for local pickup.
• Chickweed – Infused Oil for Mailers, fresh for local pickup.
• Fresh Daffodils – for local pickup.
• Bottle Charm Necklace – for mailers.
• Quince – wood for mailers, fresh bough with blossoms for local pickup.
• Spring Water – Water Element – for ritual use, DO NOT DRINK.
• Juniper \”Wand\” – Fire Element – Juniper, Chrysanthemum, Ash, Dandelion, Basil, Jute – for burning as a smudge stick or miniature \’ritual fire\’, or add to a larger firepit or fireplace as part of ritual.
• Ash pentacle coin – Earth Element and Crow \”Shiny\” – Wind-downed Ash disc with tinned copper wirework pentacle.
• Lemon Juniper Incense – Air Element.
• Soap – goat milk base with raw honey; dried henbit, dead nettle, and chickweed; decoction of the three; juniper olive/avocado oil, and wildcrafted beeswax.
• Handmade Bath Bombs – Orange zest for scent and symbolism; juniper, chickweed, and purple dead nettle oils to moisturize; dried dandelion, chickweed, henbit, and dead nettle for skin irritation and blemishes. Great for use on the face. Also contains baking soda, citric acid, and cornstarch.
• Baby Garlic – Holdover from last month\’s freeze. Only for local pickup.
• Egyptian Walking Onions – We aren\’t able to add these as planned. The freeze killed off many of them, and we have just enough to replenish the bed if we keep them in the ground. This is the way of working with the world around us – there is always a need to adapt.

Correspondences

Each item in your box is practically useful, and also has symbolic or magickal meanings – correspondences. Below, find details on each item in your delivery.

Most of your items contain some of the following ingredients. Here are correspondences:

• Chickweed – Chickweed is a cooling herb, ruled by the moon, promoting the balance of healthy boundaries and individual growth within a supporting community of like-spirited souls. I can\’t do any better by this beautiful early herb than the powerful writers at Funky Forest. Chickweed is a powerful soother of inflamed situations, spirits, and emotions, just as it soothes the skin. For a really lovely chickweed pesto recipe that feeds the body and the spirit, go to The Druid\’s Garden. For specific magickal uses check out this post by Texas Witchery.
• Purple Dead Nettle – This cheerful, hardy early-spring herb has the latin name Lamia purpureum which, loosely translated, means \’devouring purple monster\’ – an apt description of the way this Lamia can spread. The Lamia in mythology is a woman who loved her children so deeply and fully that in losing them she became monstrous.  Anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, and anti-inflammatory, the gentle medicine of purple dead nettle is good for the little infections, cuts and bruises of childhood – and usually safe to be consumed by generally children. A tough little herb who overcomes obstacles with flexibility and grace, Purple Dead Nettle can help you find joy in the cold moments and cool inflamed moments. Too much can have a laxative effect and pregnant or breastfeeding women should not use. The \”Learn Religions\” website has an excellent piece, including recipes and spell usage, on Dead Nettle in magick.
• Henbit – has the energy of the maiden about her.
• Juniper – 
• Lemon – 
• Orange – 
• Olive Oil – 
• Avocado Oil – 
• Daffodil – 
• Quince – 
• Honey – 
• Goat\’s Milk – 

Here are some details on your items:

• Juniper Infused Oil mixed Olive and Avocado Oil for skin care – keep refrigerated after pickup.
• Chickweed Infused Olive Oil
• Purple Dead Nettle Infused Olive Oil
• Purple Dead Nettle – dry for mailers, fresh for local pickup.
• Henbit – dry for mailers, fresh for local pickup.
• Chickweed – Infused Oil for Mailers, fresh for local pickup.
• Fresh Daffodils – for local pickup.
• Bottle Charm Necklace – for mailers.
• Quince – wood for mailers, fresh bough with blossoms for local pickup.
• Spring Water – Water Element – for ritual use, DO NOT DRINK.
• Juniper \”Wand\” – Fire Element – Juniper, Chrysanthemum, Ash, Dandelion, Basil, Jute – for burning as a smudge stick or miniature \’ritual fire\’, or add to a larger firepit or fireplace as part of ritual.
• Ash pentacle coin – Earth Element and Crow \”Shiny\” – Wind-downed Ash disc with tinned copper wirework pentacle.
• Lemon Juniper Incense – Air Element.
• Soap – goat milk base with raw honey; dried henbit, dead nettle, and chickweed; decoction of the three; juniper olive/avocado oil, and wildcrafted beeswax.
• Handmade Bath Bombs – Orange zest for scent and symbolism; juniper, chickweed, and purple dead nettle oils to moisturize; dried dandelion, chickweed, henbit, and dead nettle for skin irritation and blemishes. Great for use on the face. Also contains baking soda, citric acid, and cornstarch.

Using Your Items

The items in your box are yours to do with as you please. I don’t put together “spell kits” or provide rituals for you – you have your own path to walk, and I have mine. Instead I try to provide you with items to use in your own practice, sharing some of my own plans and ideas as inspiration. Legalese, because it’s an important thing sometimes: By using these items, you acknowledge that YOU are responsible for any and all outcomes, including any allergic reactions, and not me or The Witch’s Garden. Know thyself, witch.

 bring you the shiny desires of your heart, ready for the taking. May the Spring bring you new warmth, light, and growth, and may you thrive with the changeable spirit of this growing season.