My first new moon practice

New moon in Scorpio and I had no idea what I was doing but I love ritual.

There’s healing in it. And I was in dire need of healing. It was November, the four year anniversary of leaving an abusive relationship and I was trying to find new ways to heal.

Rebirth and cleansing of the soul come from the sacred customs we create. And my soul needed cleansing and rebirth.

That night I did it all by feel.

I lit candles and placed pieces of driftwood brought in by the sea at each corner of my space. Next to each of them I placed a candle and a precious totem, a gift from someone I love — something I’ve carried through all the loss of the past few years.

There was a rusted ampersand from Ronne.

A winged goddess Nike my brother brought me back from Greece so many years ago which also reminded me of Jason and his good words when the wing broke and my soul was crushed at the Handsome House, a handmade paper flower from Sam accompanied by the words, “so much love to you,” and a Rodarte Christmas ball painted with galaxies from my mom.

There was also a candle sitting on a plate with a blue M in the center.

It was circled by all the phases of the moon and the words, “majestic moonlight,” — a gift from my dad after much time spent perusing Anthropologie on my behalf. My evangelical preacher dad, who might not appreciate the irony of his majestic moonlight plate being used in this kind of sacred moment but who loved me even with our diverging paths .

A pink crystal anchored the center.

Okay, let’s be truthful, it’s actually a broken pink rock salt lamp but it’s BEAUTIFUL and rock salt is technically a crystal. It was there I sat cross legged in the midst of so much love and beauty and began to answer questions about what I hoped to see happen in my life. Some of them for the first time.

In the midst of all the healing I’d been doing for the past several years, I had somehow forgotten to ask myself what I wanted out of life. And so, I began. Soon hot tears were pouring down my face as I wrote powerful declarations about where my life was headed and they all began with these words….

“There is plenty.”

I wrote them at the beginning and they were woven throughout and I sealed my thoughts with a flourish by writing them on the final line. “There is plenty.”

It took so long for me to understand that my life can be what I choose for it to be, what I want it to be. I get to make it up as I go along. But I have to decide where I want to go so I can get there.

So do you.

Write those words down.

Set your intentions so your heart, mind, body, soul, life, the entirety of the universe can follow along.

There is enough. There is more than that. There is plenty. Embrace it.