New Friends, New Spot, New Moon, New Medicine

I had the chance to host a new moon circle in Sweden. I had three wonderful wise women who could hold the space, so we took the chance to have a New Moon Circle as I have most moons since 2000. The new Moon is a powerful time to align your thoughts with the present moment, consider the cycle that has past, and set intentions for the cycle to come. I have circled with women on the new moon since 2000, after being inspired by a teacher who was charged with the task of bringing women's lost medicine rites into the present time by the Sioux Native American elder Archie Lame Deer. I usually lead with a waivering voice, and the strange feeling that comes when I feel I am coming out of the closet as a woo-woo weirdo. Well, I have embodied that energy long enough that it is no longer strange, thanks to my sisters at home in Florida. This moon I was at ease setting the circle with a group who was new to the idea. I was sitting in the direction of west- sunset, completion, and Fall. Right where we are on the wheel of the year.

Sitting in the east was the momma-sister friend that helped motivate me to get the circle going for real this moon. She is moving back to her home in Holland, so we had to do a circle this moon or not anytime soon. By chance she sat in the direction of east, new beginnings.

Here she is modeling chocolate sprinkles from Holland- the best in the world! See how they suggest on the box that you eat them on toast? Yum!

We became freinds in the spring. I am grateful someone recognized from my posts on an forum that we would likely make good friends. She made an initial effort to seek me out and meet me, and I am so thankful. We found in each other kindred spirits in a country away from our homelands- she from Holland most recently by way of UK, me from USA. We were the perfect 'mom' friends. Her kids are 4 and 2. She was an ecology major, but not working a job while busy parenting, with an gentle/ attachment parent kind of philosophy. Her kids were not in Dagis, so she was the rare totally stay at home mom like my friends and I in Florida were. That is unusual in Sweden since free/ cheap Dagis/preschool usually starts by a year to 18 months here. Coming from Holland where 30% of birth is at home, she understands and shares my passion for home birth. But she also had a crappy birth experience like I did with my first. And since she trained as a breastfeeding counselor in the UK we had that in common as well- nursing our own for a long time as well as helping others get started. We share a background in energy work/awareness, have a preference for Waldorf schools, can talk baby carriers, and have fun loving science geek husbands. We cook the same kinds of food. But they moved back to Holland last week.

It was fun while it lasted, and our friendship gave me hope I can find someone of my tribe even here in Sweden. And now we have friends to go visit in Holland!

They had the best homemade wooden kitchen, made of wine boxes and baskets.

We had a great last play day together the week the cold came. We went exploring the 'Troll Forest' near her home, and I enjoyed seeing the favorite spots she had found in the year they were here in Sweden for a PhD post doc position.

It was a frosty morning in mid-October!

Which meant it was time to bundle SwedeBaby up in her snowsuit for her second big outdoor adventure. As a Floridian who knows nothing about babies and cold, I was prepared having learned on venture #1 with baby in cold that babies need mittens.

SwedeBaby in her Snow Suit! The kids all bundled up, ready to go on an adventure! They live in Torna Hallestad, the village nearby with a forest of special rare and protected birches that grow in twists and turnsThere are many magical play spaces in that forest, and chanterelles, too! We found a bunch of ripe elderberries just in time for flu season!

We easily and quickly picked 4 pounds/ 2 kilos, and left plenty for the birds

Once home, SwedeGirl destemmed most of them, and I boiled them up to make jam and syrup for medicine. Elderberry keeps viruses from replicating and is an excellent remedy for viral illness like flu.

I am feeling grateful for moons, mamas, magic forests, medicines, and the many gifts our time here has brought.

We have just one moon to prepare for a long journey. Next moon we depart on a three month trip back to the USA. So for now we welcome the frost and longer darker nights (it was dark by 5 tonight!), because with plans to be in Florida for two whole months for Christmas and beyond, we will elude most of winter this year.