With the rich, earthy Virgo New Moon’s energy that ignited last evening, we are presented a fresh and grounded approach to goals, wellness, and day-to-day management to help revitalize things. Maybe you’ve felt guided to look at where you may not be operating as productively as you can. Bringing in a creative approach can help to make things fun and fresh. If you haven’t, think about making more time for the pause so that moments for yourself can be part of your renewal. Try not to push and rush ahead. Things have their way of unfolding just right. By spending more time in nature and with animals when possible, you learn this wisdom reflected all around you and align with Virgo’s resonance. This is a great time for journaling and organizing thoughts and guidelines for what you are feeling about where you’d like to go, and how you might takes steps to get there. Be open to innovation and harness lighter, imaginative ways to get things done. An anchored foundation will support you through the continued rapid changes.

Ask yourself, “How can I optimize opportunities and be my best?”

As a Virgo herself, Astrid knows these energies well. And with today, the 15th of September, being her birthday celebration time, this post will have a lot of the things she loved in it that warmed her Virgo heart. I love that she and I were Virgo/Pisces counterparts – the perfect compliments to one another.

As we approach Autumn Equinox on the 22nd, I’m feeling all the extra feels that the seasons ahead tend to bring. Thoughts turn back to Astrid and all the fun we’ve had through each season, including our Autumn witchy fun together.

I was floored when I saw that the photos below of us were part of 2020’s Rare Halloween/Samhain Full Blue Moon Magick – oh Astrid and that Blue Moon!!

September through November is one of my favorite times in the great outdoors here.

The light of day, colors, temperatures, and quiet make for beautiful backdrops to nature immersive exercise.

I already got my new bulbs I’ll be planting as my Autumn ritual again.

This year I have 159 beauties to add that include a fancy variety of crocus, tulip, hyacinth, and allium. I LOVED the 3 giant allium (you might recall below) that grew this year as a surprise, so I hope to have a lot more!

I have already been seeing and feeling the shift of seasons in the air, evident in my garden and the landscapes both around and within me.

The flowers keep cycling through and end of Summer blooms are changing into their Autumn gowns now.

From the wildflowers of the forests…

To the blooms in my garden…

Everything has been wildly lush and vibrant as ever.

I’ve even received some more yummies, with several tomatoes still on the way.

The hummingbird moths continue to frequent the garden in abundance. I’ve become so enchanted by them and seeing them dance along with the butterflies and bumble bees.

We’re having our back deck redone in a gorgeous dark cherry trex decking, so Dave and I had to move all of my pots down to the lower garden area. I now have view of all of my plants from my Wonderland office. Astrid would love that and I know she’s enjoying it with me.

In moving the pots and deck furniture I found a family of tree frogs living in the couch. We often saw one tree frog at a time that would jump out of the couch now and then, but as we removed the cushions there was not one, but two….no, three!

First I found the momma, then I found the oh so miniature baby, and last I found the big daddy.

Each of them hopped aboard my palm and I brought them down to the potted plants so they could take refuge there while things are in process. I was overjoyed finding them…and the baby speaking of new cycles birthing in the circle of life. Their discovery came on the heels of my having found a half dozen miniature (less than an inch) dark frogs in the forest we hiked with our friend on a rainy day not long before this. Frog energy staying consistent indeed.

Speaking of birthing – that reminds me I had a very clear and impactful dream on the night of 9/11. Without going into details of the whole thing, I found myself yet again physically pregnant. My stomach was large and I was feeling labor pains. I remember my saying I was 51 in the dream and that this was scary. I was preparing for birth, and while telling a friend about this, who has two children herself in real life, I expressed that only one or the other would make it and sensed that the baby would live, but I wouldn’t. I’ve since made the connection and understand the parameters I’m working with here.

I continue loving to watch the evolution of plants and blooms in my little faery sanctuary on the edge of the forest. My garden will always remind me of Astrid because of how much she shared in a love for it.

You could always find her looking outside, basking in the sunshine that streamed through the sliding glass door through the trees, watching me when I was working out there, and waiting with patient excitement for what little nibble of a delicacy I might bring in for her.

It was a shared joy between us to have such a sacred piece of Mother Earth to experience together.

And her spirit will always live vibrantly within the blooms, plants, crystals and stones, garden and forest friends, light, and even the soil.

Having received her ashes back home, I will be adding a pinch to the garden to infuse her being with the Forest Portal she loved. I learned that she was cremated on 9/1 (so September really did ignite her rebirthing celebrations), the woman who helped us, picked her gorgeous box of ashes up on 9/6, and on 9/8 Astrid returned home to us.

It just so happened that on 9/8 I received a potent and special delivery from across the world from a favorite place of mine, of two large and heavy boxes filled with treasures I’ll share in upcoming days – one gift that was specially created to have Astrid physically with me always.

But she is indeed with me every moment…I see and feel her in everything – especially our shared room.

In her last days, I found Astrid sitting by the window looking out with her physical and inner eye at the land of her home she loved.

It made my heart swell with warm tears.

And I would sit with her and reflect on all we have shared and created here.

On one of our last days I told her I would take her out into the garden, so she could see everything close up for the last time, feel the sunshine on her fur without the filter of the glass, and smell the fresh alpine air filled with scents of the garden, forest, and the wild animal friends she made here.

Dave snapped several photos of us to have and cherish. I wore a vintage 1950s Muriel Ryan rabbit print dress, which added to the nostalgic energy and had me feeling in Beatrix Potter mode even though she passed in 1943.

It was also a bit like a modern day Alice in Wonderland feel, as Astrid and I looked at all the garden statue friends that came alive in the in between hours she was most active in herself.

We could feel the Cosmic energies strongly around us, as the sun set over the mountains, streamed through the trees, and illuminated our love.

Astrid will always be a part of this garden and home, as she came into our lives just before we purchased it.

Every bit of love we poured into this house and land included hers. I still remember the very first time I took her downstairs after setting up her new Wonderland room, and how overwhelmed she was.

She looked at it all, smelled the air and peeked in, then turned to me saying, “Is this really all for me?” To which I answered, “Yes, all of it. You deserve it.”

And she quickened her steps to rush to me and place her head in my hands, as we shared the most precious moment of joy, love, gratitude, and sweet tears.

Our Wonderland room evolved over the years – to mirror both of our desires – and she knew from that first day forward that she was truly home, loved, seen, and could peacefully reveal all of herself and her gifts without fear – the latter she always and continues to support me with.

Part of the changes were supported by the crystals we both called in that infused our daily life and work together.

I find it curious that the last two crystals she physically worked with that are awaiting homes, are both Virgo-connected ones – Rhodonite and Agate. I added a Virgo note to each on the Crystals and Crystal Skulls page for this New Moon Energy.

Here is a video of Astrid in her last days preparing herself and her crystal friends for her physical departure.

And while crystal work continues to be on high, I am experiencing a continued upgrade to my own abilities.

One of the promises I made to Astrid even before I knew she was leaving, was to turn up the volume on my energy. And when she passed I have stood in that promise, calling upon all of me to the forefront. In my past I remember shutting down some of my gifts because I saw what they were capable of doing. I even remember one of the odd players in my life that showed up mysteriously and the weight of his words deepened the turn of the key on that door to remain closed. I see now how my concerns had drawn this person in – back in the day I used to not have a lid on my energy and so it poured out in all directions and drew in all kinds of experiences. It’s no wonder I subconsciously shut many down and held others back from their potential.

The door is now open and I’ve been retraining myself to call up all of the power within and laser focus it when needed. In this way I’m consciously creating and not having things happen simply because my energy leaks without creative direction.

It’s a form of harnessing one’s inner magician, and calling up and mastering all of the elements within, as without. But then not being afraid to turn the volume up as high as I want and am capable of. It can be both magnificent and intimidating all at once to witness. But so far, no one has had to, as personal work can be a sacred and intimate process not needing to be shared.

I feel deeply this is where we’re all headed and some of you and others have already embarked upon this journey – authentic power without hindrance….and oh what wonders await once unleashed with conscious direction.

I keep seeing so much creative beauty, transformative potency, and reflection of that power streaming through more and more. Sometimes I’m in pure awe at what I witness and experience.

September 7th was one of those days and Nature made it clear that there were no more hindrances except the ones we choose to believe in.

I’d already, that day, experienced some amazing instant manifestations from things I put myself fully into, and then we took a long hike that pumped up the volume on the magick.

On our way to one of the alpine lakes here we – Dave, myself, and a friend – were about to cross a creek. They were ahead of me and I stopped, immediately noticing a garter snake in the middle of the path neither of them had seen.

I paused to watch her, standing solid with my feet about two inches apart, and called to the guys so they could see her too. They approached and we watched as she slithered toward me. I figured she’d go off into the grass, likely wanting to get to safety since the others were right behind her, but instead she continued toward me, slithered around my feet and then passed directly through both of them and under me, then made her way under a rock and disappeared.

About a half an hour later we found a dead chipmunk on the side of the trail. I told them they could go ahead, as I needed to bury her. But they waited and I did my thing, taking care to give her a proper burial.

When we got to the lake I then noticed an osprey right away…but wait! There were three! I’ve never seen more than one together before. These felt like a family, just like the frogs…mom, dad, and young adult learning with parents. We watched with awe as they circled over and over and plunged into the lake to catch lunch, which two of them did.

We then came upon a bank where swarms of minnows swam in a protected little area of the water accented by a gorgeous backdrop of majestic mountain beauty.

They reminded me of the tadpole swarms and I loved watching them move together in unison. This area was also swarming with so many dragonflies all over the grassy and bloom filled banks. We all remarked on how many there were and how magickal everything had been so far with all of these sightings.

On our way back, we had to recross a big meadow. The guys were ahead again and I was thinking about and talking to Astrid. I reflected on all I’d seen and experienced so far, feeling the depths, and told her how much I loved her and missed not having her physically there.

Then something caught my eye in the grass to my left. It was a giant dragonfly.

I bent over and saw that it wasn’t moving. I reached my hand down to gently touch it, and realized it had passed peacefully in this beautiful meadow…frozen in time and captured in its grace eternally.

Of course the dragonfly was blue.

I can’t tell you how many “blue” things have been happening for me and others since Astrid’s transition.

And now, after communicating with her, this dreamy dragonfly, blue as the Moon Astrid road upon to the stars, with wings of enchantment glistening in rainbow delight.

Indeed light carries on endlessly.

I’m going to end this post with a song. It was the song I sang so often when Astrid was with me and it became our song. It’s called Saturn, by Sleeping at Last.

Whenever I sang it, she would always get very still and go deep within, and our hearts were like an open portal flooded with our love swirling together through my voice. In those moments we could fly on the wings of that love.

This was often the case when we shared our love.

It’s not often that I like songs with words. Of course I enjoy songs of my past for the nostalgia and sing them by heart…but mostly I enjoy the wordless so that music can just move through me and paint a story each time, unencumbered.

This song is short in words, but the words spoke a lot to me. I always knew what it meant and foretold. The future in the present, felt as the past.

It’s a vulnerable thing to share our voice and love with others, but I sang this song on the eve before she passed (we recorded several things in fact) and Astrid encourages me to share it so that others can feel the doors open through the vortex of the heart – the place your power resides and can never be diminished by another…it merely grows like a garden when shared.

I love you dear Astrid.

With every fiber of my being.

Happy rebirth my most cherished treasure.