Honouring ancestors and departed friends helps them keep the living alive. Perhaps start by writing down their names, saying them out loud, and lighting a candle. You can also attend services (see www.choralevensong.org for a service near you).

Each celebration invites us to reflect on the mystery of life and death — to remember that by honouring those who came before, we rekindle the flame of the living. They are celebrations that affirm life’s interconnectedness and humanity’s resilience.

October 31st - November 1st is a celebration known as Samhain, Nos Galan Gaeaf, or Blōtmonath. It marked both abundance and fear — a time of feasts, storytelling, and games to glimpse the future as the veil between worlds thinned.

What great photos! So glad you enjoyed the event. Thank you for sharing.

Michaelmas invites us to explore angels—whether as beings, guides or symbols of courage. Visit Michael shrines, walk a pilgrimage, or attend Evensong with angelic music: www.choralevensong.org/uk/
#CelebrateAngels #FaithJourney #britishpilgrimage

Did you know?
• 816 churches in England are dedicated to Michael & All Angels
• The ‘Michael Line’ runs Cornwall–Suffolk, passing many sacred sites (See www.britishpilgrimage.org/portfolio/ma...)
• 30% of people in Britain say they believe in angels (Rupert Sheldrake)
#StMichael #Angels #Pilgrimage

To investigate the section of the Old Way that visits Southwick, search for "Southwick" on our route and place map. The Old Way section from Titchfield to Havant: Lost Shrines and the Oldest Yews, passes the remains of Southwick Priory.

Old Way route:
www.britishpilgrimage.org/portfolio/2-...

And as Michaelmas is next Monday, what better way to celebrate that, than to join us on the Archangel Michael pilgrimage in Wells? Details here: www.britishpilgrimage.org/events/wells...

This photo in this group is of blackberry jam made by blackberries gathered on our Glastonbury guided pilgrimages this year. Yum!

Prickly and sweet, flexible but resilient, when the Bramble is seen as the embodiment of the calendar's Vine, it reminds us to take everything in balance - perfectly timed as we approach the point between summer and winter.

Blackberries should be harvested by the Equinox (Monday, September 22) in the Druid tradition, or by Michaelmas (Monday, September 29), as the Devil spits on them (he landed in a bramble bush when he fell from Heaven after fighting Archangel Michael).

Whilst a nuisance when they block our path, there's something about blackberries that brings out the Hunter-Gatherer in us all, tying us to the first people to walk the ancient tracks still followed in this land. Tenacious, protective and abundant in harvest.