Although the Autumnal Equinox is still nearly three weeks away, today is the day that many of us think of as the first day of Autumn. It is the day after Labor Day; the day when summer houses are closed and children return to school. Somehow we can just feel the presence of Autumn already in the air. And soon the social and cultural season will whirl back to life as the symphony, the ballet and all manner of other activities resume after taking summer hiatus.

I'm not sure if this is because, being on the East Coast, we feel the changes of the seasons more distinctly, but when I am 90 I will still associate this time of year with the beginning of school and the excitement that always meant for me as a child. New books, new shoes, new classes, new adventures.

To quote Joe Fox from You've Got Mail:

Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies.

This year I actually will be buying school supplies. How exciting!

I've been giving quite a bit of thought to what Red Raven has to say about Nature and Culture:

Not only are we seeking to build a religion that's sensitive to the cycles of the natural world, we're working out how to do this within a specific cultural framework. This is why many of us prefer the term "culture-based" paganism over "nature-based."

It occurred to me yesterday, after considering my own musings on being a witch in the city, that it might be appropriate to develop a ritual to mark the change we feel at this time of year. Seasonal to an extent, the change is more accurately cultural, based as it is on our memories of going back to school and the experience of beginning a new cultural season. Although no less important than observing Mabon, the traditional Sabbat, a new ritual to acknowledge and celebrate our "culture-based paganism" seems right for this self-proclaimed Grey Witch.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 4:19 PM