Love this. I want to do something like it next year, with harvest, birds, the winds, the darkening of the days, bears, ice, first snow, etc. Thank you.
I was tickled that June 20 was Sun day. That’s my birthday. 😁
It’s hard to find time to relax when you have a toddler, I remember. The only time was during naps, and instead, I ran around like crazy trying to get everything done around the house that would just be torn apart when my son and daughter got up. Somehow, that didn’t matter so much as being there for them and experiencing them growing did. No one would be putting on my tombstone that I kept an immaculate house and I really didn’t want to be remembered for that either.
This was lovely and inspiring, Sophie. Will your new calendar have the 6-week seasonal things marked, like leaf week? That would be sweet! I'm sorry it was a hard year. I hope next year is easier. I've probably said this before... ages 2 and around then are so exhausting; I remember them being the hardest years of my life. But it does get easier. I am on the other side with a 9yo and it's a whole other planet. In a good way. I just want to report back to you in case that helps. They are still cute but they sleep through the night and do their own thing a lot. They read books for an hour on their own while you read! They get dressed on their own! They play Scrabble with you! (Ok, this is an N of 1, and every kid is different, but basically I do believe and hope there will be lots more sleep and you time. All ages are wonderful but some are less exhausting.)
Also this is a GREAT question: "So here’s the question: how do you get a few extra people, but not make it stressful for yourself? How do you figure out how to gather without the work? How do you make the gathering a kind of rest? Finding the answer to this question is probably my life’s purpose." When I think back to when I had gathering as a kind of rest it was always because the friends were close ones, not judgy but lovely and supportive and purely happy to be together. So the psychological weight of worrying what they are thinking or saying the right thing was absent. Also, potlucks and other gatherings where everyone pitches in can be, in my memory, a kind of rest. Have a good friend come early and help you prep and you can chat together, and a friend stay later to help clean up and chat, and it feels easier. I don't have such a close local friend circle now but I did once and I believe I will again. If I lived near you, you'd be part of it, I'm sure. ❤️
Thank you for this. It has given me an idea of how I can try to take a hold of my existence. Mostly I seem to be floating along with no aim, alternating with struggling from one time of pressure to the next. Since the next druidic festival is the winter solstice, I am hoping to try to bookend this period, from now until then, and look at it as a time when I can have some control and respect my intentions; just for this six weeks! A start point – today – and the closing point of the winter solstice. We’ll see how it goes. Again, thank you.
"It’s possible that “celebration” is just another word for “prayer.”"
This really struck me. And I'm going to ponder on it going forward.
I remember when you first wrote about this druidic calendar idea, and I have semi-adopted a similar idea, though less formally, maybe adopted an outlook is a better description. Trying to notice the little micro-seasons as they pass, and wallow in them where possible. (Another inspiration being the Japanese micro-seasons, which I apologize if I read about here first! I shall share them back again anyway https://www.nippon.com/en/features/h00124/ )
Here those micro-seasons include:
Fox sparrow season - they pass through for around a week in April, and again in Oct/Nov
Chanterelle season
Goldenrod season
Frost flowers on the frozen lake season......and so on. Mostly nature based.
I also have months when I focus on the same craft/hobby every day, with varying success. Letter-writing in February, hand-spinning in July (Tour de Fleece is a spinning event that runs concurrent with the tour de France), embroidery in November. That said I only picked up my embroidery for the first time this morning, so November isn't going to plan yet!
Thank you for sharing your exploration of this idea Sophie. I really hope that 2023 is a better year for you and your family.
Thank you Sophie, there is so much goodness in this one! I want to go through and take notes, but I’ll wait and get a calendar first. I was walking in the woods yesterday and there were so many multicolored birch leaves on the ground on on the trees and they looked so pretty with their little ridges that I actually (and I’m not a person who normally does this but maybe/hopefully that’s changing) had to shout out loud to the trees “WELL DONE EVERYONE! GORGEOUS!”
I’m most excited to celebrate Groundhog Day! I have a vision of chocolate cupcakes with Oreo soil on top with little marzipan groundhogs popping out. That might be because we’re rewatching all of the great British Baking show seasons to combat the early darkness. I don’t know if it gets darker sooner in the Netherlands than in the states but we also live on a farm so it’s DARK dark. Another thing we did this year to help with that, that I actually put in my calendar ahead of time- whoa synchronicity- was on November 1 buying a bag of oranges and some butchers string and slicing them thinly and drying them in the oven at 90C/200f for 4 hours and then stringing them up around all the doorways and windows in the house. Smells amazing and looks so festive.
P.s. “wonton nature” of taking down the basil is the most charming typo I’ve ever read and I know it’s annoying to point out typos and I wouldn’t except it made me smile very wide
❤️ I love this post, and your made-up calendar, and your IRL calendar-to-be! I’ve wanted to keep a mood log, but haven’t been able to stick with one format long enough for it to be useful -- I would love to know where/how/what you use to track your mood. 🍂
your "happy mess" thoughts remind me of a story about a lady who was upset that her grandchildren always tracked mud across her pristine white floors until someone helped her reframe it to see that if the floors were pristine, that would mean that her grandchildren weren't visiting her at all, so she could eventually embrace the happy mess of it all.
this is all to say, thank you for sharing of your happy messes!
A few years ago I started making playlists for each month of the year. Just very long playlists of songs that feel like that month, or that I first listened to that month. Now I find myself looking forward to the changing of the playlist. They make things feel a type of way, and remind me that although time is moving it does circle back too.
Sophie! Yes! I want your calendar so badly! I have been thinking about how there are two seasons: warm season in which I do not think about my toes at all and cold season in which one of my toes always is tender or painful because it was once mildly frostbitten. I think it is funny to tell time with my toes.
I actually know there to be many distinct micro-seasons from my time working in prairie conservation but I cannot feel them so easily in the city. On the prairie, I told time in colors according to when certain plants were blooming or saying hello. I find that plants in the city do not all share time because they were planted at different times and there are so many micro-climates (another one of my favorite things to think about). I've been working as a gardener and think of myself as a bringer of the seasons. I planted the mums when it was time and now I am ripping the dead ones out. I suppose, I can actually feel the seasons just as easily, but it feels mixed up because the weather is a bit out of sorts.
Love this. I want to do something like it next year, with harvest, birds, the winds, the darkening of the days, bears, ice, first snow, etc. Thank you.
I was tickled that June 20 was Sun day. That’s my birthday. 😁
It’s hard to find time to relax when you have a toddler, I remember. The only time was during naps, and instead, I ran around like crazy trying to get everything done around the house that would just be torn apart when my son and daughter got up. Somehow, that didn’t matter so much as being there for them and experiencing them growing did. No one would be putting on my tombstone that I kept an immaculate house and I really didn’t want to be remembered for that either.
This was lovely and inspiring, Sophie. Will your new calendar have the 6-week seasonal things marked, like leaf week? That would be sweet! I'm sorry it was a hard year. I hope next year is easier. I've probably said this before... ages 2 and around then are so exhausting; I remember them being the hardest years of my life. But it does get easier. I am on the other side with a 9yo and it's a whole other planet. In a good way. I just want to report back to you in case that helps. They are still cute but they sleep through the night and do their own thing a lot. They read books for an hour on their own while you read! They get dressed on their own! They play Scrabble with you! (Ok, this is an N of 1, and every kid is different, but basically I do believe and hope there will be lots more sleep and you time. All ages are wonderful but some are less exhausting.)
Also this is a GREAT question: "So here’s the question: how do you get a few extra people, but not make it stressful for yourself? How do you figure out how to gather without the work? How do you make the gathering a kind of rest? Finding the answer to this question is probably my life’s purpose." When I think back to when I had gathering as a kind of rest it was always because the friends were close ones, not judgy but lovely and supportive and purely happy to be together. So the psychological weight of worrying what they are thinking or saying the right thing was absent. Also, potlucks and other gatherings where everyone pitches in can be, in my memory, a kind of rest. Have a good friend come early and help you prep and you can chat together, and a friend stay later to help clean up and chat, and it feels easier. I don't have such a close local friend circle now but I did once and I believe I will again. If I lived near you, you'd be part of it, I'm sure. ❤️
Thank you for this. It has given me an idea of how I can try to take a hold of my existence. Mostly I seem to be floating along with no aim, alternating with struggling from one time of pressure to the next. Since the next druidic festival is the winter solstice, I am hoping to try to bookend this period, from now until then, and look at it as a time when I can have some control and respect my intentions; just for this six weeks! A start point – today – and the closing point of the winter solstice. We’ll see how it goes. Again, thank you.
"It’s possible that “celebration” is just another word for “prayer.”"
This really struck me. And I'm going to ponder on it going forward.
I remember when you first wrote about this druidic calendar idea, and I have semi-adopted a similar idea, though less formally, maybe adopted an outlook is a better description. Trying to notice the little micro-seasons as they pass, and wallow in them where possible. (Another inspiration being the Japanese micro-seasons, which I apologize if I read about here first! I shall share them back again anyway https://www.nippon.com/en/features/h00124/ )
Here those micro-seasons include:
Fox sparrow season - they pass through for around a week in April, and again in Oct/Nov
Chanterelle season
Goldenrod season
Frost flowers on the frozen lake season......and so on. Mostly nature based.
I also have months when I focus on the same craft/hobby every day, with varying success. Letter-writing in February, hand-spinning in July (Tour de Fleece is a spinning event that runs concurrent with the tour de France), embroidery in November. That said I only picked up my embroidery for the first time this morning, so November isn't going to plan yet!
Thank you for sharing your exploration of this idea Sophie. I really hope that 2023 is a better year for you and your family.
Thank you Sophie, there is so much goodness in this one! I want to go through and take notes, but I’ll wait and get a calendar first. I was walking in the woods yesterday and there were so many multicolored birch leaves on the ground on on the trees and they looked so pretty with their little ridges that I actually (and I’m not a person who normally does this but maybe/hopefully that’s changing) had to shout out loud to the trees “WELL DONE EVERYONE! GORGEOUS!”
I’m most excited to celebrate Groundhog Day! I have a vision of chocolate cupcakes with Oreo soil on top with little marzipan groundhogs popping out. That might be because we’re rewatching all of the great British Baking show seasons to combat the early darkness. I don’t know if it gets darker sooner in the Netherlands than in the states but we also live on a farm so it’s DARK dark. Another thing we did this year to help with that, that I actually put in my calendar ahead of time- whoa synchronicity- was on November 1 buying a bag of oranges and some butchers string and slicing them thinly and drying them in the oven at 90C/200f for 4 hours and then stringing them up around all the doorways and windows in the house. Smells amazing and looks so festive.
P.s. “wonton nature” of taking down the basil is the most charming typo I’ve ever read and I know it’s annoying to point out typos and I wouldn’t except it made me smile very wide
❤️ I love this post, and your made-up calendar, and your IRL calendar-to-be! I’ve wanted to keep a mood log, but haven’t been able to stick with one format long enough for it to be useful -- I would love to know where/how/what you use to track your mood. 🍂
dear sophie,
thank you for this as always.
your "happy mess" thoughts remind me of a story about a lady who was upset that her grandchildren always tracked mud across her pristine white floors until someone helped her reframe it to see that if the floors were pristine, that would mean that her grandchildren weren't visiting her at all, so she could eventually embrace the happy mess of it all.
this is all to say, thank you for sharing of your happy messes!
love,
myq
A few years ago I started making playlists for each month of the year. Just very long playlists of songs that feel like that month, or that I first listened to that month. Now I find myself looking forward to the changing of the playlist. They make things feel a type of way, and remind me that although time is moving it does circle back too.
Sophie! Yes! I want your calendar so badly! I have been thinking about how there are two seasons: warm season in which I do not think about my toes at all and cold season in which one of my toes always is tender or painful because it was once mildly frostbitten. I think it is funny to tell time with my toes.
I actually know there to be many distinct micro-seasons from my time working in prairie conservation but I cannot feel them so easily in the city. On the prairie, I told time in colors according to when certain plants were blooming or saying hello. I find that plants in the city do not all share time because they were planted at different times and there are so many micro-climates (another one of my favorite things to think about). I've been working as a gardener and think of myself as a bringer of the seasons. I planted the mums when it was time and now I am ripping the dead ones out. I suppose, I can actually feel the seasons just as easily, but it feels mixed up because the weather is a bit out of sorts.
I hope you have a good week. Take good care.
Hey Sophie, just wondering what the discount code is for paid subscriptions!
Hi! It will come out in today’s Invitation email!
Hell yeah thank you!