By Mary O’KEEFE

We just went through Samhain, the Celtic origin story of Halloween. I am not a fan of Halloween but I do like Samhain. I like that it is not just about the spookies that roam the Earth being more spooky from Oct. 31 to Nov. 1. Samhain is more about the change of season, that death is natural, that it happens to make way for life. 

I celebrated Halloween with my grandkids on Oct. 31 at Montrose Spooktacular and after, walking through the lovely, generous and fun neighborhoods of Sparr Heights. That was Halloween full of spookies and candy but this Friday, Nov. 7, we will continue the Samhain celebration by remembering. 

I am making rosemary remembrance cookies and my grandkids and I will be going through all of the photos of family members who have passed. They will not only hear stories of their great grandparents but of their great, great-plus grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins. These are the stories that have been passed down from generation to generation. They will get to see the photos of their great grandparents and great great grandparents who immigrated from Ireland. They will learn about their great, great-plus grandfather who fought in the Revolutionary War. They will see who they look like, find out who they take after and hear some outrageous stories coming from a very colorful family tree.

This is the importance of Samhain, to remember those who have gone before us … the family that has made us who we are, warts and all. Although I may have never met my great grandparents, or other long-passed family members, because of the stories shared by my grandmother I feel I know them. These are the spirits that stay around me. They may be more present when the veil is thinner but I feel they are with me all year long. 

Samhain celebrates the end of harvest and the Celtic New Year. It is the time of year between the lighter half of summer and the darkness of winter, and it is a 2,000-year-old celebration. It was a way ancient people honored not just those who went before them but it gives meaning to the Earth’s seasons. 

Samhain is followed by Imbolc on Feb. 1 and Bealtaine on May 1.

Imbolc is the celebration of light. It is midpoint between winter and spring. It is about new beginnings and celebrates the Celtic hearth goddess Brigid. 

Bealtaine is the spring celebration that honors the fertility of the Earth. 

What I like about these celebrations is their connection to the Earth. We may think (in our AI world) that we are advanced but I feel our ancient souls would never allow the Earth to be taken for granted the way our society has done so for centuries. 

In fact, the ancient Celtic kings would perform a ritual binding them to the Earth. It was actually a marriage between a leader and the Goddess of the Land. The Goddess Earth would favor a king with fertile land and make him, and his followers, prosperous. This was called the banais righi. The king would swear an oath to uphold and protect the land and his people and in return the Earth would flourish. The people, his subjects, would also take this marriage seriously and helped support and protect the Earth to honor their king and the Goddess of the Earth. 

And that brings me to the present. COP30, the UN Climate Change Conference, ended on Oct. 31. There were some significant scientific reports released prior and during the meeting. These reports tell us how close we are to the point of no return with our poor Goddess Earth. I have yet to read all of the reports and honestly – I need a minute before diving into the news – but I think we are looking at a failed marriage. 

The ancients may not have have had the science behind the planet’s ecology, but I think they understood it much more than we do now. They understood the fragile balance and had a stronger connection with the ecology of the Earth and took on the responsibility of keeping healthy the Earth around them.

Our recent deep marine layer should be lifting after this morning allowing more sunny skies starting today. Our temperatures will be in the upper 70s/lower 80s. The weekend looks sunny but next week there is a possibility of rain, with some winds …nothing extreme, according to NOAA.

NOAA is tracking a storm that could possibly bring some rain and winds to our area starting on Wednesday.