New Adults, New Halloween Traditions

Updating a Halloween Tradition  

Maintaining family traditions can be a challenge as children grow up, move away, and form new families of their own. Young adults may make an effort to return home for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, and/or Kwanzaa, but Halloween? Not so much.

When my daughter was in elementary school, an October highlight was the annual trip to a working farm in Brentwood, California. We breathed in dust during the jostling mile-long hayride to the pumpkin fields. Then the treasure hunt commenced—the race to find just the right pumpkin out of a seemingly endless sea of orange. Afterward, we sipped apple cider under a brilliant blue sky before tackling a cornstalk maze.

Flash forward sixteen years.

My daughter lives with her boyfriend in a congested urban jungle. Not a pumpkin patch or corn maze in sight. But Brilliant Beautiful Daughter discovered a new type of pumpkin patch, one that combined our mutual love of art, philanthropy, and shopping. Instead of a farm, we visited the Glass Pumpkin Patch at Santana Row in San Jose.

Glass Pumpkins

The Glass Pumpkin Patch is the brainchild of the non-profit Bay Area Glass Institute. Money raised from the event helps cover the Institute’s operating costs so it can continue to offer affordable workspace for glass blowers, and offer classes to the public.

The weekend event attracted young families, twenty-something tech workers and college students, seniors, and art lovers of all ages.

Glass Pumpkins at Santana Row, San Jose

After browsing the artful pumpkins created by nine local artists, we sat outdoors and listened to live music while feasting on delicious cupcakes from nearby Kara’s Cupcakes.

If, and when, grandchildren come along, we will head back to the farm. In the meantime, I can’t think of a better way to update a great Halloween tradition than a visit to the Glass Pumpkin Patch.

Carrot Cake Cupcake from Kara's Cupcakes

Copyright 2015 Ariella Moon

http://www.AriellaMoon.com

Second Chance at Love

Rachel Jones is back with a new contemporary romance!

TAKING A CHANCE ON LOVE

 A touchdown for the coach when the music teacher accepts his love

BLURB:

From childhood, Virginia Manning has planned for a career as a concert clarinetist. Blindsided by family circumstances, her plans are interrupted, taking her down a path she would never have chosen. As a music teacher, Virginia’s relationship with the football coach goes from problematic to romantic. After Blake’s brush with death, a scared Virginia runs away looking for the contentment music has always brought to her life.

Because Blake Oliver has experienced disappointment and pain, he opts for a fresh start in a small New England town. Accepting the position of football coach, he isn’t looking for love when it finds him. But when Virginia leaves to pursue a performance career, Blake realizes it’s not where you live but having someone to love that matters. His only problem is making her understand that as well.

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EXCERPT:

She pulled her arms across her chest in an attempt to calm her shivering. Bright lights reflected from her rearview mirror, the only headlights she had seen since she had stopped on the side of the ride. Releasing a sigh of relief, she waited for flashing blue lights to interrupt the blackness surrounding the car. No blue lights. Her heart began racing at hearing a car door slam. She was alone, on a deserted highway. Checking the locks on her doors, she thought about driving away, but how far could she go with a flat tire?

A tap on the passenger window made her jump. “Hey.”

The dark night made it impossible to see the face outside the passenger window. Fear made it impossible to move.

“Come on, Gin. It’s wet out here.”

No one else called her Gin. She hit the automatic button releasing the lock and Blake pulled the door open. Relief flooded her body and was replaced by anger.         

“Blake — you nearly scared me to death.”

“Not the best time for a flat tire. You’re soaked.”

“You’re not so very dry yourself.”

“Where are you headed?”

“I was on my way home. I had an early dinner with my family before they left for the weekend. Staying to play my piano wasn’t a bad idea — I just got caught up in my music.” She loved how her music could take her away from everything, but the downside was eventually she had to come back to reality. “Anyway, I was going through my options when you drove up.”

“Your spare is lying in the mud.”

“I was going to try changing it, but when the lightning started, I chickened out.”

“Well, you can’t drive all the way to Boston soaked to the skin. And I really don’t want to change a tire in this downpour.”

“So what do you suggest I do?”

“Let me take you back to your sister’s house. You can stay the night and deal with the tire in the morning.”

Virginia didn’t respond, didn’t want this moment to end. He was here, beside her and the intensity of how much she had missed him came crashing down upon her like tumultuous waves hitting a jagged rock wall along the seashore.

“Gin?”

She looked up. “That sounds good.”

As he leaned over and pulled the keys from the ignition, it took all Virginia’s willpower to keep from pulling him close.

AUTHOR BIO:

It was thoughts of what she would do after retirement from a twenty-eight-year career in healthcare that spurred Rachel to begin writing her first manuscript in March of 2012. Needing guidance and support with her new endeavor, she joined local and national writing groups.

Rachel signed her first contract in 2013 and her debut novel, To Dance One More Day was released in June of 2014. She is eagerly awaiting retirement to write full time.

A music enthusiast for decades, Rachel resides in Kennesaw, Georgia with her husband of thirty-seven years and a spoiled Labrador retriever. She is a member of Georgia Writers Association, Georgia Romance Writers and is a PRO member of Romance Writers of America.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

https://www.racheljonesauthor.wordpress.com/

https://www.facebook.com/RachelJonesAuthor?ref=hl

https://twitter.com/RJonesAuthor

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8336834.Rachel_Jones

Ancestor Altars and Samhain Altars

Venerating the Beloved Dead

As Halloween and Samhain (SOW-en) near, the veil between worlds thins and your thoughts may turn toward your ancestors, the Beloved Dead. Many cultures and religions worldwide venerate ancestors and honor them with altars. These can be permanent household shrines containing a photo of the deceased and a candle, and perhaps the urn containing their ashes. As the Reverend Carolina Dean explains, typical Ancestor Altars contain:

• A White Altar Cloth
• A Glass of Water
• White Candles
• White Flowers
• Photographs and/or belongings of deceased relatives

Some Voodoo practitioners include graveyard dirt on their ancestor altars. An altar creates a focal point for communing with the Beloved Dead. Keep in mind that not all ancestors are friendly or good. You may want to dedicate a spot on your altar for your Unknown Ancestors (common among African Americans whose ancestral ties were disrupted by slavery). If calling upon your ancestors for aid, be sure to qualify your request. “I hereby call upon my helpful ancestors, known and unknown, whose assistance is in keeping with my highest good.” Be sure to thank the ancestors for their assistance, and perhaps leave a gratitude offering.

Samhain Altars 

Samhain, the Witches' New Year, is an ancient Celtic holiday, that marks the end of the growing season. It eventually evolved into Halloween, a separate and quite different holiday. Samhain rituals are somber religious events focusing on the recently departed. As renowned Pagan Elder Selena Fox  wrote in her article, Celebrating Samhain, "For those who have lost loved ones in the past year, Samhain rituals can be an opportunity to bring closure to grieving and to further adjust to their being in the Otherworld by spiritually communing with them."

Honey, a beloved dog, never forgotten  

Unlike ancestor altars, Samhain altars honor loved ones —friends, family members, and pets —who died since the last Samhain. In private group altars, each photo may be passed around the circle while stories are told about the loved one who has departed. In large public gatherings, such as Reclaiming's Spiral Dance the names of the recently departed are read aloud.

Samhain Altars contain:

·      A Black Altar Cloth

·      Black Candles (some people prefer red)

·      Photos and/or mementos of those who have passed.

The altar may be set up for the month of October or just for the sabbat ritual. 

Some Wicca practitioners set up a separate altar (a good distance from the black altar) to honor those who were born since the last Samhain. The birth altars should be dressed with white altar cloths, and white, pink, or blue candles, and baby rattles or booties, and flowers.

Related Reading                                                Samhain/Halloween Pictures

InsideAWitch'sNewYear                                http://www.pinterest.com/ariellamoon

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Copyright © 2015 Ariella Moon                   

Starlight Chronicles on Sale!

This series is on my kindle, and I can't wait to read it!

“The Starlight Chronicles”

The box set is on sale for $.99!

Blurb:

Lark Singer is seventeen years old and already on the way to a brilliant music career. But as she and her band, Starlight, gear up for a competition, life seems to be throwing her a few curve balls. The mysteries of her past seem to be unraveling, and she’s no longer certain she wants to know those answers or how knowing about her past will affect her difficult relationship with her mother. And when her best friend, Bean, changes things between them, all her plans for a musical future are placed in jeopardy. How can she balance her complicated personal life to keep her musical goals on track?

BOX SET CONTAINS ALL THREE BOOKS IN THE STARLIGHT SERIES:

Gideon Lee

Lark Singer

Starlight

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