Courageous Samhain with CHICKADEE

Celebrating the Dark and Birds and Art Rituals

Hail Chickadee, 
small and fearless messenger of the divine feminine. 

Champion of truth, 
calling out to reveal 
the magical vulnerabilities
that create a pathway to growth, to change, to awareness. 

With your black cap linking you to the Mystery,
allow me to navigate the labyrinth 
of small yet powerful truths 
that linger in my mind,

unlocking my own powerful potential, 
balancing light and dark, 
masculine and feminine. 

Bring with you good luck and good cheer 
in this ever evolving process 
of shining light toward the dark. 

Hail and Welcome!

Each month I am re-releasing issues of my zines 52 Feathers, 52 Petals, 52 Facets and THRIFTWITCH digitally to create a virtual archive, now known as The Khaleidoscope Zine Archive.

Khaleidoscope is the name of my Zine Club on Patreon. New zines are still being released there every month.

Zines are little booklets of wonder and self exploration. They come in all shapes and sizes. All forms from polish to grunge. They are a magick in their own right for capturing the pulse of movements and communities and individuals.

Original print issue of 52 Feathers CHICKADEE from 2019

We step into the Darkness with Chickadee!

My bird ally for Samhain and my personal symbol for Thriving in the Darkness.

I swithered on naming Chickadee as my Bird Ally for Samhain, as a more obvious choice would be Crow or Owl. When I went back to read the Chickadee issue of 52 Feathers I was affirmed in my conviction to stay with Chickadee. Chickadees are powerful allies for navigating darkness, both metaphorically with their black caps sacred symbolism, and through their winter resilience. Chickadees are not migratory, weathering the cold where they live year round. I normally see Chickadees around my yard this time of year stocking up on seeds and berries for the cold, but it has been a warm and dry autumn in Colorado, so perhaps they are preparing somewhere else in some other way.

Samhain marks the beginning of the darkest quarter of the year. Days are short, nights grow long, and for many, the most difficult part of the year approaches. I always feel the descent of the Goddess in the season, as the world dies to golden brown. This year her descent is mirrored in the heavens by the disappearance of Venus, the evening star, into the underworld. With the veil thin, and ancestors close I feel drawn to this goddess imagery more than ever.

Plate 160 of Birds of America by John James Audubon depicting Black-capped Titmouse.

Accessing the Sacred Feminine Facing the Dark with Chickadee

Anything associated with the head has applications to the thinking process, higher mind, and higher perceptions. Black is associated with mystery, the feminine, and the great womb of life. As to the color of the cap, it reflects that the chickadee can help you with the uncovering of mysteries of the mind.

-excerpt from Animal Speak by Ted Andrews

In our modern era much of the power of the sacred feminine has been lost and shrouded. Concepts once held in high esteem are now locked away or dismissed due to their link to the dark. A simple and easy way to reconnect to this aspect is to return to nature. When the nights are long many mysteries of the universe are accessible to us.

Find a quiet place to linger once the sun has set. Take time to notice every rhythm around you. The wind, the birds, the trees, your own breath. Close your eyes and listen. Open your eyes and feel. Reach out and run your fingers across the dark Earth. See the stars.

Allow your thoughts to wander, make connections, and notice any patterns. If feelings arise while bathing in the darkness of the world allow them to run their course. Anchor in a sense of your worthiness and safety.

Write about your experience here. Every thought is a possibility for creating new pathways towards health and joy.   Aho!

The Shimmering Aurora from my backyard

When I went to stand in the dark I was blessed with an incredible sight.

The Aurora came to visit us in Colorado, watermelon pink with a hint of tourmaline green. I even saw the magical banding! The shimmers of mysterious light shifting ever so slightly across the sky. At the height of the dance a shooting star fell across my vision.

I was rapt and wholly present to the spectacle, not really noticing the cold, eyes glued to the heavens. I noticed the stars bright in the cool sky, barely a cloud present. The little dipper was a stark cluster of stars together above the crown on the maple tree. Occasionally a small animal would rustle the bushes and I would jump at how large the creature sounded, clearly a coyote and not just a mouse.

I felt frustrated by the light pollution in my rural backyard- cars on the road rushing home, my neighbors floodlights on in their backyard blaring for some unknown reason, my own lights in the bedroom illuminating more than I wanted. I have had the gift of experiencing true night dark and the milky way. In Iowa cornfields. In the cold desert. High on the mountain in hot springs and trails. and I yearned for that dark blanket closer to my home, a break from the persistent urban glow.

As the shimmer of the Northern Lights faded I felt a kinship with everyone else witnessing them that night, and the thousands of generations awed, inspired, and frightened by the mysterious appearance. Thank you Chickadee for encouraging my exploration of the dark, guiding me towards ephemeral gifts in the night sky.

“All great and beautiful work has come of first gazing without shrinking into the darkness” - John Ruskin

Have you ever experienced the true night dark and the milky way?

Have you been blessed by a sighting of the Aurora Borealis?

How do you relate to the dark season of Samhain?

Look at that powerful little Chickadee tucked into that corner!

For more potent Chickadee magick and offerings the Complete Issue of 52 Feathers Chickadee is available for Subscribers below.

In this issue:

• Symbolism and Medicine from Chickadee

• Chickadee Art

• Dark Feminine Bird Magic

  If you want to check out other Birds from this series check out these newsletters: