Eliza Daley ~ Wordcraft & Musing on Home & Hope
The Nutting Moon goes dark tomorrow. Monday, the new Harvest Moon will be a thin crescent over the setting sun, which, in my part of the world, will be setting about due west after passing the ecliptic on its journey south at 2:19 in the afternoon. On Tuesday, the sun rises and sets at true… Continue reading The Daily: 20 September 2025
Today is the Feast Day of Hildegard of Bingen, one of the greatest influencers in medieval Europe. Her works were read and promulgated by bishops, kings, and popes. She led the western world in matters ranging from medicine to music, and her unique philosophy of life is still fresh and inspirational. This essay was inspired… Continue reading The Daily: 17 September 2025
Moon in total eclipse The Nutting Moon is full at 2:09pm my time. This moon comes with a dramatic total lunar eclipse visible in Australia, Asia, and the eastern parts of Africa and Europe. Western Australia and Southeast Asia get the best seats. But, as with all eclipses, there will be plenty of live-streams for… Continue reading The Daily: 7 September 2025
The Blueberry Moon went dark yesterday at 2:06am. Today begins the eleventh moon of the year, the Nutting Moon. The Nutting Moon is new between 17 August and 14 September and full between 31 August and 28 September. It is one of two moons that may be dropped to accommodate the wandering Harvest Moon, which… Continue reading The Daily: 24 August 2025
The Feast of the Assumption It is the Feast of the Assumption. In the Church calendar, this is the day Mother Mary was taken bodily up to heaven without the inconvenience of dying first. But in the older calendar of Europe, this was the time when it was recognized that the heat of summer was… Continue reading The Daily: 15 August 2025
The Blueberry Moon is full early this morning at 3:54am. Last night's moonrise was closest, but tonight's will still be almost full. If you have breathable air, go enjoy the radiance for all of us who are living in perpetual eclipse. Meanwhile, here is a story for the Blueberry Moon... I started writing a story… Continue reading The Daily: 9 August 2025
Lammas It's the probably not-terribly-ancient festival of bread, Lammas, Hlaf-mas, Loaf Mass. This holiday is possibly an English variant on the Irish first fruits and fair festival of Lughnasadh, but compacted into one day and generally lacking any ritual or narrative. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, churches in East Anglia constructed elaborate… Continue reading The Daily: 2 August 2025
Lughnasadh It is Lughnasadh. This is my favorite time of year. Some may love midwinter twinkle; others may love the summer sun. But I live for the autumn blaze. The cooling weather, the increasing darkness, the slowing pace and renewed time for reading and introspection. The color and pageantry of fall. The scents of leaf… Continue reading The Daily: 1 August 2025
I was thinking about the symbols of Lughnasadh and how to short-hand the description of time and seasonal energy. The idea set that best works is that of the elements, but I’m reluctant to use that language because it carries such woo-woo magickal baggage that it puts up walls in the mind of any practical… Continue reading The Daily: 31 July 2025
The goldenrods began blooming last week, the garlic is ready to dig, and the calendula are getting unruly. This is when central Vermont starts to see these sorts of signs of the approaching autumn. The very tops of the maples start to glow in yellows and reds. Many mornings begin in fog, and many evenings… Continue reading The Daily: 29 July 2025
By My Solitary Hearth 