Kate & Brent
February 7, 2014
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Saturday, March 08, 2014
Table for my Mother
Thanksgiving 2013 Menu
Breakfast
Grandmother's Monkey Bread and Coffee
Lunch
Curried Butternut Squash Soup
Puff Pastry Previews
Dinner
Roast Duck with Pomegranate-Honey Orange Glaze and Caramelized Citrus + Cranberry-Pomegranate-Orange Sauce
Carrot, Parsnip & Fennel Roasted in Duck Fat
Classic Cornbread Dressing
Green Beans with Parsley & Garlic
Kale & Fennel Salad with Pomegranate Seeds
Kings Arms Tavern Sweet Potatoes with Marshmellows
Ambrosia with Orange, Clementine, Grapefruit, Pineapple & Coconut
Crescent Rolls
Dessert
Pumpkin Pie and Pecan Pie made from scratch and served with homemade whipped cream.
A ritual for cleansing the energy in your home:
October 2013
At a friend's house.
This ritual is a cycle of six processions through the home. The first three loops are designed to clear the space of stagnant, negative energy and the last three are designed to hold space for the new and to invite in the positive. This is DIY energy magic adapted from Carole Fogarty's Rejuvenation Lounge. Adapt and revise at will!
1. Gather your tools.
You will need: salt, a sound instrument, something from the earth, holy water, fire/candles, a few bowls, and an intention of your own design. Arrange your tools in a way that is pleasing to you and that offers ease of access. I think it is useful to write your intention down and keep it here, on your altar.
We used salt from the kitchen, sage from my garden, bells from my altar and a gong from my friend's house, tea candles, a small notebook and pen, assorted bowls and spoons, and a tea tray as our altar.
We made our holy water with basil from the garden and a few drops of Chanel No. 19. We held the bowl in our hands and breathed together, clearing our minds and relaxing our bodies. We visualized our intention and chanted OM three times to seal the deal.
2. Light your fire/candle and state your intention. The ritual is begun.
3. Start in your chosen location (front door or altar is best) holding your bowl of salt. Move around your home sprinkling a handful of salt across doorways, in corners, and anywhere you feel the energy is heavy. You might focus on a bed due to illness, in the kitchen due to lots of arguments, or along the window sill next to troublesome neighbors. Leave for 12 hours if possible. Trust your gut feelings.
4. Clap away stagnant energy. Now you will be moving around your home for the second time - clapping continuously. Clapping is a fabulous way to sense and read the energy in your rooms. When a clap is crisp, clear and easy to do then it generally indicated the energy is light and flowing. When a clap is heavy, dull or flat sounding this generally alerts you to the fact that there is stagnant/stuck energy. Stay in these spots for longer, continuing to clap until you feel your clap become crisper and clearer.
5. Use your sound instrument to amplify the resonance begun by clapping. Move through your home for the third time, using your sound instrument to activate the space. Bells, cymbals, gongs, or pots and pans work well here. Make a holy racket! Chase those demons out! This is like shooing a bear from a campground - use your voice and your body if you feel the urge. Make a noise, let it out, scream and shout, bang a gong, get it on! Again, linger longer in areas that you feel a thicker energy in. Trust your gut. Shake it out.
6. The first cycle is complete. The slate is wiped clean. The fourth loop is a turning point and a pause. Breathe deeply and absorb the charge of the silence in the wake of your holy racket. Walk through your home with your mind clear and calm. Feel the infinite space around you. Now use your forefinger to trace an infinity symbol into the space along each wall and room of your home. The repetitive motion of tracing this powerful and ancient symbol invokes balance and harmony in you and your home.
7. Uplift with holy water. On the fifth circle of your home, flick or spray your holy water into the center space of each room to infuse your blessed intention and healing energy into your home.
8. The sixth and last time you walk a circle the energy of your home. Simply walk into each room and offer a prayer, affirmation or mantra. Don't rush, be calm, and mindfully repeat your mantra to each room. Leave each room with gratitude.
9. Seal your practice by returning to your altar and doing something to clarify your own energy. We used Lion's Breath followed by three OM's and the pinching out of our candle to conclude our ritual.
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