Unique Gratitude

We are deep into the Celtic harvest season called Lunasa.

This season calls us to pause and focus on gratitude for the Creator's provision in and through all of creation. The tilt of the earth has slowly brought the harvest season upon us once again. That great pendulum that provides the cycles of the seasons is an ever-present reminder that God hasn’t forgotten all of the creatures and blesses us anew with food, shelter, relationship, and provision of all kinds. You are a part of that Divine story. You belong.

The Carmina Gadelica provides us with a beautiful Lunasa blessing. I have adapted it here and I hope that it will bless you this day.

Reaping Blessing 90, Alternate
From the Carmina Gadelica (slight alteration for our setting)

On Lughnasa at the rise of the sun,
With the sun rising, warm, in the east,
I will go forth into the morning light,
And I will reap the harvest I have sown.
I will stand under the open sky
With the fruitful earth all around me,
I will raise my eye upwards,
I will turn on my heel quickly,
Rightway as travels the sun
From the direction of the east to the west,
From the direction of the north with motion calm
To the very core of the direction of the south.
I will give thanks to God who blesses me
For the growing crops of the ground,
Who gives food to us and to the flocks
I will give thanks to God who blesses me
For the harvest that flourishes in my life
Whatever that harvest may be
And I will offer to God, sharing what I have

As you enjoy this blessing, please take note of the beautiful acknowledgement of the four directions which always encircle us - east, west, north, and south. This encircling provides many interpretations of life, but here it is the suggestion of the full containment of life in all directions and that the provision comes from the necessary place and the power and movement of the sun. The natural cycles hold our life as they always have.

Also notice that the harvest is not just a material harvest of food. It is also an inward harvest that is unique to each of us (For the harvest that flourishes in my life whatever that harvest may be). The deposit of provision within your soul may show itself differently than the deposit in my soul. However, each of us is called to “offer” to God and share what we have. As you experience gratitude for what you have been given this day and in the depths of your life, please consider a response offering to others, to Earth, and ultimately to God so that the harvest is perpetuated and multiplied. This is the miracle of the harvest season both outwardly and inwardly.

-Kirk Webb
(Director of The Celtic Center)