Summer brings me such a feeling of freedom and letting go, and late summer, a feeling of focus and calm. The hot, sticky, humid days of the peak of summer are starting to transition into drier, mellower, more golden days. Corn is growing tall in the fields, birds linger longer at the feeder, and the hum of insects sounds somehow less urgent. Although I haven’t taken any vacation days and I’m plugging away at work, I’ve been able to get out and enjoy hiking, visiting museums, stopping at new ice cream parlors, and shopping for fresh ears of corn and crisp green beans at farm stands. I’ve even been able to see my daughter and her partner, which truly is the highlight of any season.

As I enjoy each summer day and breathe in deeply to remember summer’s beauty for the colder months of the year, a sense of autumn starts to make itself known. Stores are stocking Halloween decorations already, of course (I even saw Halloween candy already!), and my own internal calendar starts nudging me to think about costumes and decorations, haunted villages, and smiling skulls. But so too are the silent signs making themselves known – the underlying spirit of the season, and the deepening sense of the otherworldly.

The witch’s hat ~ a blackening waxcap

The mushroom in the above photo is believed to be a type of waxgill mushroom sometimes referred to as a witch’s hat. The conical shape and its habit of eventually turning black make it reminiscent of a witch’s hat. My mushroom above is not yet “blackened,” but I love its deep orange color and its bold appearance. I took this pic while hiking in woods about an hour from where I live. It’s a place brimming with many varieties of mushrooms, and one of my favorite places to go walking. This daring orange mushroom seems uncannily appropriate. It is timely for the season, but it also aligns with the growing nearness of autumn and the anticipation of Halloween or Samhain.

From August to autumn

This happens every year for me. Once I am into August, I start to feel the pull of autumn. You’d kind of think I’d just want to put off the coming of colder days, but honestly, I don’t think I’m alone in this feeling. There is something so alluring about autumn, and the Halloween season is enchanting and magical. In summer I think I am my most easygoing… in autumn, I am perhaps most closely myself.

Magic and mystery

That sense of magic and mystery of autumn is easily apparent in the way the fallen leaves dance on the wind in whirling, rustling circles; in the shadows that grow and lean across walkways; and in the starry darkness that seems more vivid than at any other time of year. We all feel it… some call it the thinning of the veil; we might naturally feel a growing connection to the unseen. But I think it can also be seen as far more mundane than that. From summer to autumn we feel such a distinct change of season. We can see it all around us, and we can smell it in the air. We watch as the beauty of autumn grows from the dying of summer.

Around this time, I really start to feel like pulling out a Ouija or other spirit board, though I so rarely actually do use them. My dreams often become a bit more cryptic, staging scenes that I often encounter pieces of in the following days. The mystery is real, and the magic beckons.

Coming soon…

So in the following weeks and months, as summer begins to wind down, there are a number of tarot decks, books, and other wares I hope to share here, as well as day to day reflections about my experiences with the changing seasons. If there is anything you’d like me to review, or a topic you’d like to see covered, please feel free to drop me a line. I’m always happy to hear from visitors, even if you just want to say hello.

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For now, you might be interested in my review and blog post of the Mushroom Folk Oracle, a captivating tarot for lovers of woodland magic (and mushrooms!). And if you, like me, are getting in the mood for Halloween, check out the Trick or Treat Tarot at Amazon.

~ Nellie

just a note: I’m far from being an expert on mushrooms, and though I strongly suspect the mushroom above is indeed a Witch’s Hat, I cannot say with authority.