I can't help but let you know how wonderful the L&S Retreat was here at the covenstead.  So many great things went on from Greeting the Sun with Yoga to the Labrynth and Lughnasadh Ritual.  I hope some that came will chime in and share what you thought as well.

 The weather was wonderful and we all got to know each other as we played a game called "Go Goddess" and many did readings for any that wanted advice from the various divination tools that were available.

We are now planning a Witch;s Ball for Samhain  which promises to be a very magickal and fun event.  I can't wait!

I will try to get her a bit more often to let you know what is happening at L&S.

Warmest Blessings

~ Lady Majyk ~

LIGHT THE FIRE WITHIN



(by LeAnn Rimes)
Have no fear
when darkness falls
'cause there's a light that shines
within us all
although this world
can turn so cold
when we reach inside
we find our warmth

'cause there's a flame that burns
in every heart
and it's the will we have
that lights the spark

{Chorus}
once in every lifetime
there's a chance to stand apart
we can show the world
our very best -
reveal what's in our heart
so the story goes and glory
never will end
inspiration lights the fire within

and if we fall
we won't stay down
we will get back up
and use the strength we've found
and we will rise
like champions
every obstacle
we'll overcome

{repeat chorus}

and if we just stay strong
then our hearts will move us on

{repeat chorus}

each heart there burns desire
inspiration lights the fire within

The Full Moon of April

"Seed Moon"

Monday, April 2.

The April full moon comes today at 5:15 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time. This is the most distant and smallest full moon of this year.

The moon's distance from Earth ranges from about 350,000 to 400,000 kilometers. In other words, at its most distant - before dawn tomorrow U.S. time - the moon will be about 50,000 kilometers - about 30,000 miles - farther away than at its closest.

Everyone around the world will see a full-looking moon throughout the night tonight. But we won't all see the moon at the instant that it's full. In the US, for instance, the moon will be just past full as it rises in the east at dusk. Tonight's moon is the first full moon since the March equinox. The first full moon of a northern hemisphere spring is commonly called the Paschal Full Moon. Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon in spring. That's why Easter will come this Sunday.

Meanwhile, in the southern hemisphere, tonight's moon will be the full moon that comes the closest to their autumnal equinox. For people in the southern hemisphere, tonight is their full Harvest Moon. All of us on Earth will see a bright star near the moon tonight. That star is Spica in the constellation Virgo. For today, that's our show. We're Block and Byrd for Earth & Sky.

The number 7 can help you figure out the dates of closest and most distant full moons. The closest full moon for 2007 will come seven full moons from now, on October 26. Seven full moons after that, we'll have a smallest full moon again, in May of 2008.

I hope you will plan something extra special.

Spring Equinox
March 20th/21st -

Spring has sprung!

Alban Eiler

The Spring or Vernal Equinox marks the point when day and night are of the same length - 12 hours. After the Winter Solstice the days lengthen and the nights shorten , and 'Equinox' means equal night and 'Vernal' comes from the Latin word for 'bloom',
as in the northern hemisphere the Spring equinox marks the end of Winter and the beginning of Spring. Light and dark are in balance now, but light is gaining.

The earth awakens... new life emerges, sap rises, buds shoot and spring flowers are celebrated as gifts from nature. Spring returns and rejuvenates our own life force.

This equinox is also known as Ostara or Eostre - and is celebrated as a festival of new growth, renewal, a re-balancing of energies and the return of longer days.
It is also known as the day of equilibrium. Now is a good time to consider the balance of our lives - work, play and relationships.

Ostara, also known as - Oestara, Eostra, Eostre was the pagan goddess of fertility and Spring, and the Christian festival of Easter derives its name from her.
Easter is calculated by the moon, and occurs on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the equinox.  This is the time when the young Sun God now celebrates a sacred marriage with the young Maiden Goddess. We celebrate the return of the spring goddess
from her long season of dormant sleep.

The egg symbolized Eostre's wholeness and fertility - the female hormone oestrogen is named after her - and is offered at this equinox as a symbol of fertility and new life. The golden yolk represents the Sun God, its white shell is seen as the White Goddess.
Decorated eggs, egg rolling and egg hunts originate from pagan fertility rites dedicated to Eostre - symbolising fertility and re-birth, eggs are offered to the earth to ensure a fecund future harvest. Nature is 'hatching out' with new life.

In Greece, it is traditional at Easter (Paschal ) to exchange red dyed hard-boiled eggs - a symbol of new life. The red colour is believed to have a protective power and to Christians signifies the blood of Christ.

The hare was regarded as the sacred animal of the lunar goddess, because of its fertility and activity at this time. Witches were once believed to shape-shift into hares. Now rabbits have become one of the symbols of Easter - they are these days more prolific and common than the graceful hare.n
Another symbol of the Goddess at Ostara is the snake, which emerges from winter hibernation to bask in the Spring sunshine. Due to the shedding of its skin the snake was a symbol of new life.

MAGICKAL HEALING MASSAGE

Massage is one of the single most important therapies used in healing.
The visualization of chi, or 'life force," being manipulated is a valid method for moving healing
energies through the body. This life force is thought to originate in the spine with its movement
going either down the legs and out through the toes, or up the back and along the arms and
then out through the fingers. In all techniques of massage that use visualization of chi there
are some very basic rules:

1. Once you begin to touch the body, the movement should always be away from the spine,
either up the body and out through the fingers or down the legs and out through the toes.
If you begin to massage the neck, then you must visualize that energy moving out through
the arms and then the fingers. You should not make any movement down the back.
The flow and direction of chi are very important.

2. Keep at least one hand on your partner's body (if you are reaching for oil, for example).
Once you begin touching the body, you should continue that movement until the energy is
brought out through the feet or the hands.

3. Eventually your hands will become tired and cramped.
According to conventional medical wisdom, you have strained them from overuse.
Chinese practitioners believed however, that when this happens you have simply taken the
nervous energy from your partner and brought it into your own aura.
Their technique is to shake both hands, snapping the excess nervous energy off into space. It works.
You relieve your cramps and your partner feels a definite loss of nerves

4. The more you are able to visualize the movement of this energy, chi, the more vibrant the
experience of massage is to your partner. She or he will literally feel the energy!

5. Foot and ear massages are more important than neck and back massages.
There are more meridian points in the ear than most of the rest of the body combined.
The ear symbolizes the body in a fetal position.
The foot also symbolizes the entire body as well, and by learning reflexology you can
enhance the healing of internal parts of the body through correct massage of the feet.