Many Thanks to all who have sent me e-mails with comments about my Circle series or anything else. It's always great to hear from you, and I will respond. My e-mail address is:
doloresriccio@comcast.net.
To those wonderful readers who have expressed an interest in the next two Circle adventures (all written), please be assured I am working diligently on finding a new publisher for this series, now that Kensington has bowed out. It only seems to take forever. I promise, these books (and more) will be out of my closet & computer and into the realm of published books...
someday.
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Holy Hecate! The Third and Final Harvest Is Upon Us!
Halloween or Samhain, the last of three traditional harvests, begins a time of darkness and reflection on the precariousness of life, and how precious is every moment we spend together in this beautiful world. It’s also a time when the ability to see in all directions is keener—those with a touch of clairvoyance or prophecy will be visited with the clearest visions near the end of October.
Hecate, Goddess of this time of waning light and warmth, is also the Goddess of the Three Paths—Earth, Sea, and Sky. Today you will often see her depicted as the hag of Halloween, but in the ancient times she was revered as a luminous, powerful spirit representing the three ages of women. At Samhain, she appears to us in her crone persona, no hag at all, but still lovely and serene, a guide and protector of wise older women. Hecate is also known as Queen of the Night and Goddess of the Crossroads. She assists women to bear children and helps those who are old or very ill to make a peaceful passage into the next world. Whenever a journey is made, especially at night, the protection of Hecate may be sought. It is Hecate who counseled Demeter in her trip to the Underworld to rescue her daughter Persephone.
Presiding at the dark of the moon, Hecate is at home in the unseen world of Spirit, especially this “ghostly” time of year.
. At Samhain, the veil between the worlds is thin, which is why the spirits of family members and friends who have left this world may reach out to us or we to them. The simplest way to observe this custom is to light a candle, concentrating our thoughts on the loved person we’d like to honor. Spirit communication takes many subtle forms. A fragrance may drift through the room, an old song may come to mind, a guidance may be given, a whisper may stir the candle flame. Whatever happens, it will be a sign that you recognize as relevant to a specific person who has passed away. Skeptics will tell you that this was imagined.
But you were there, you know better..
Known for devotion to her hounds, Hecate will forgive my lateness in posting these thoughts, knowing that we have just adopted an 8-year-old skinny “German Shepherd mix” stray. We’ve named him Jack (Blackjack formally.) Hecate’s hounds were said to have three heads so that they could see in three directions (past, present, and future.) Although Jack has only one head, he can spot “in a thrice” a treat offered in any direction. He can’t tell us in words of his past life “on the road,” but it must have been a lonely, hungry time.
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All Hallows Eve
Night of the void between the worlds,
night when the veil between the worlds is stirring, lifting,
when the old year shrivels and fades, and the new year has not yet begun,
when light takes the form of darkness,
when the last light sinks into darkness like spilled water,
disappears in the leaves, in the hot secret runs of earth underneath.
when grandmothers rise like mist,
the silent grandmothers with soft tongues of fog in the ear,
claiming nothing for themselves, nor complaining that they were abandoned,
when children go out clothed in darkness,
the children with sweet orange lips slip among whispers,
go out with wavering candles among crosses and mossy eyes in stone,
when the children go out in the mist,
the children tasting of candy, of carelessly spilled dreams,
the children like far-away stars flaming into the soft folds of darkness.
© Dolores Stewart Riccio,
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Walt Whitman wrote: This is what you must do: Love the earth and sun and animals, despise riches, give alms to everyone who asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward people…and your flesh will be a great poem.
Akkadia Ford wrote: The experience of the sacred is profoundly connected to love. Magick is ultimately the art of living consciously, connected to all life. In this enraptured state…moonrise, sunrise, or star rise, every blade of grass…echoes within our cells. From her essay “Magickal Ecology” in Visions for a Sustainable Future, Llewellyn, 2005.
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It’s not a Circle novel but it’s something special to me.
If all goes according to plan, in November,
Bellowing Ark Press in Washington State is going to publish a collection of my poems called
Doors to the Universe. About 75 pages, trade paperback style.
Bellowing Ark is also a bimonthly literary journal, whose editor Robert R. Ward has been continually publishing my poems for a year or more. The journal’s title comes from a Dylan Thomas quote: “Look: I build my bellowing ark to the best of my love as the flood begins.”
http:/
/bellowingark.org/
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A Psalm for Gaia
The Earth is my mother, I shall not want.
She nurtures me in green pastures;
she freshens me with flowing waters.
She restores my body and awakens my soul.
Although I walk in the shadow
of changing seasons and passing time,
I will not fear death,
for the essence of life is within me,
the peace and beauty of Earth comfort me.
She teaches me to harvest her abundant gifts,
she fills my heart with compassion,
I drink from the cup of simple pleasures.
As I look to the skies with wonder
at the immensity of the universe,
I know I am blessed beyond measure
to live all the days of my life
in the bountiful house of Gaia.
© Dolores Stewart Riccio
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Chickpeas and Lentils in a Zesty Tomato Sauce
Just the dish to warm a chilly evening. Make this ahead and it will be even better. Warm slowly on the stovetop or in the oven.
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 to 3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 ½ cups chicken broth, or water with chicken bouillon added
½ cup dry lentils, rinsed
1 (about 28-ounce) box Pomi strained tomatoes
3 cans Progresso chickpeas, rinsed well
1 teaspoon dried oregano
6 or 8 Progresso peperoncini (small piquant peppers)
½ teaspoon or more salt, to taste
Dashes of coarsely-ground black pepper, to taste
In a heavy pot, heat the oil and sauté the onion, bell pepper, and garlic until softened and fragrant. Add broth and lentils, and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, until the lentils are tender and the broth is nearly all absorbed.
Add the tomatoes, chickpeas, oregano, peperoncini, salt, and pepper, and simmer over low heat for an hour or so, stirring frequently.
Makes 8 or more servings as part of a buffet
