This year will be the first time I celebrate Lammas with my daughters. Up to now, Yule has been the only sabbat I have openly celebrated with them. I wish I had good reasons to share as to why I have not included them in earlier sabbat celebrations, but regardless of my previous actions, tomorrow we will celebrate Lammas as one.
I have been thinking all morning about how I would explain the purpose and importance of this holiday to them. In the Wiccan tradition I follow, Lammas means the following –
It is the first harvest festival, which celebrates the grains of the field. With the cutting of the grain, the god begins to weaken. Yet, as he weakens, the goddess begins to fully feel the strength of their child growing within.
After some thought, it occurred to me I should write a short poem to read to my daughters which would explain the sabbat's significance. What I came up with was this –
Lammas
The first harvest in the Wheel of the Year,
Farmers cutting the grains will draw us near,
To the God who will soon become the Sage,
As the wheel moves toward Samhain and the dawn of a new age.
I plan for tomorrow’s celebration to be simple. We will honor this holiday by making corn bread loaves as a family. The loaves will then be shared with family and neighbors. Since corn is a grain and Lammas is the celebration of its harvest, making corn bread loaves will be an appropriate working for this sabbat.
How will you celebrate Lammas with your children this year?
