I’ve started paying attention to the Moon Phases in the past couple of years. It’s amazing what a difference tracking the Moon makes when you look at cycles of energy expansion and contraction. The idea is that in the time between the New Moon and the Full Moon, energy expands as the Moon waxes, and the time between the Full Moon and the next New Moon, energy wanes along with the Moon.
This cycle deeply impacts the energy in my body through the month as well as my fertility. As the Moon wanes, I find myself exhausted and weary, my body craving relief… release. My monthly flow begins during the time of the New Moon and I rest in the dark, preparing for the next cycle. As the Moon waxes, I come alive again as my energy grows along with the light of the Full Moon. I ovulate with the Full Moon and so begins the energetic decline towards the end of the cycle and the beginning of the next. This pattern helps me to plan activities and events. I know that to be in busy and hectic situations around the New Moon is an energetic disaster for me, but to be social and engaged in the external world is an exhilarating joy during the time surrounding the Full Moon. It has been fascinating for me to connect to myself and nature and explore working with cycles (daily, monthly, seasonally, yearly) in my day to day life. This wisdom has been so valuable.
Sidenote: Did you know that in gardening, for plants with crops grown above ground, you should seed after the New Moon and before the Full Moon? For plants with crops below ground, you should seed after the Full Moon. This is Old Farmer’s Almanac stuff and it’s something we are attempting this year in our garden. I would encourage you to look into the idea, if you are so inclined. As I’ve stated in several previous articles, I’m loath to get into details that I may spin and misinterpret when there is so much already well documented. Obviously, you can plant at any time, but it will be interesting to see what differences might occur when working with the lunar cycle on top of the cycling of the seasons.
Tonight is the New Moon and, as with the Full Moon, I use the opportunity to sit quietly and contemplate the month ahead. This is a time of energetic release, but with that comes a space that I like to fill with intention for the next cycle. What do I want for myself in the next month? Where do I want to focus my attention? What do I want to bring more of into my life? How do I want to grow? I use this time to do a lot of journaling and I also use Tarot Cards to help shine light on some aspects that I might be too deep in the daily details to notice. Expansion is the name of the game in the fortnight ahead so I plan how to best utilize the coming energy. It is a beautiful time of contemplation and reflection on the month past and intention-setting for the month ahead based on an honest look at where I am at the moment. This darkness is an invitation to rest deeply and to move forward mindfully and with intuitive guidance.
I delight in nature and the common cycles that occur daily, monthly, yearly, seasonal, life… It’s a joy to sit and to reflect on what has passed and to pour attention into being receptive to the most purposeful path forward. Having ritual days to sit and contemplate release as well as develop intention based on intuition has been an extremely connecting experience for me. I ground into the rhythms of my body as well as nature around me. I encourage everybody to do the same.
