On Lammas

August marks the beginning of Harvest season and the celebration of Lammas.  This is a time for not only reaping the benefits of our ripened crops, but for paring away that which we no longer need.  It is also traditional to hold tournaments in which individuals can demonstrate athletic and mental prowess! All in the name of fun, of course . . .

My recent move from California to Illinois brought me to the not-so-surprising realization that I own a lot of . . . stuff.  As I began packing up my two-bedroom apartment in late May, I found myself sorting through everything with a willingness to let go.  Still, four trips to the Salvation Army later, I was purchasing box after box in order to fit what remained in a 17’ truck.

We are supposed to reap the fruits of our labors.  But is it just the physical bounty we must catalog? Certainly our material items are a measurement of our success.  We purchase the best items we can afford or spend extra money to stock up on items we will use in the months to come.  And there is something to be said for all of this!  We are meant to be abundant!  We are to take delight in this world and what it has to offer us by way of our abilities to create!

And there is more.

Lammas is not only the harvest of physical fruits.  In it’s celebration we measure our spiritual gifts, our relationships, our dreams and our skills.  We assess our mastery of living life!  And peel away the bruised and rotten layers no longer serving our growth or evolution.

We recognize and release our attachments to that which we have created!

As we unloaded the truck upon its arrival in Illinois, I watched as one of my crates tumbled down a flight of stairs spilling items that had made the cut for my big move.  The face of the college kid handling the crate was more than a little mortified as he stared at the broken pieces of various items that had been thrown from within it.  He looked at me and began a fumbling apology that I interrupted with, “they’re only things.  Nothing I own is irreplaceable.”  As we picked up the pieces, memories of the people and events connected to them flashed through my mind.  And with or without the objects, those memories will never disappear.

I am less and less attached to the “things” I own in this world.  This is a temporary stop in the midst of a long journey.  I appreciate my earthly treasures.  And I will continue to work hard and flourish in my abundance, accumulating more items I will have to pack for my next move!  But having and needing are very different concepts in my world these days.

My connection to and healthy relationships with God & Goddess, my Family, Friends, Community and the Earth are the “things” I need.  Everything else is a bonus!