The First Harvest of the year is a time to reap what we have sown, take stock of what we have and where we’re going as the nights begin to shorten on our way into the autumn & fall. The festival of this time of year is called Lammas which means “loaf-mass,” referring to bread, and comes from England. The first harvest is also known as Lughnasadh, named after the god Lugh of Irish mythology and comes from one of the great Celtic-Fire Festivals.
These festivals are historically about abundance and the First Harvest of crops. Here in the Mid West we are seeing the literal first fruit harvests of blueberries and other wild berries. There is a wooded community and a wooded path in another location that are both bursting with wild berries at this time of year. And as soon as they do, they will be gone from those of us foraging for them before the animals beat us to the First Harvest of the year. I am always competing with other foragers and the local wildlife for these delicious berries.
The First Harvest is a time to release what is not working in our goal setting practice and let those things fall away to make room for what is working. We should focus on our growth during the second and third harvests before the final turn inward and the resting and reflecting of the winter months.
Give thanks for how far you have come and give thanks for being now over half way on your journey through the year.
Journal Reflections:
- Harvesting & celebrating your goals thus far.
- Practicing gratitude and thankfulness for the accomplishment of your goals and/or the lessons you have been taught on the year’s journey so far.
- The literal weather & forcasting on the progress of your goals. Has this year been a sunny journey or a stormy one full of thunder and clouds? Is the atmosphere around your goals about to break, giving way to the cool reprieve following the storm? Or is there a front coming in?
- The fruits of your labors.
- Reap what you have sown and share the gifts of your harvest with others.
- Recording in your journal the new found truths of your year’s journey thus far.
- Turning inwards to reflect on your goals and be grateful.
The First Harvest is the time to set your patterns for the coming winter months with intention. You may already feel the shift and the winds of change, this is a time of change & transformation for the year. These cooler nights and days are perfect for camping. While around the campfire, reflect on your journey so far this year. How far have you come? How far do you have still to go? Release what is ready to leave you or what already has, and receive with gratitude what comes your way this time of year.
To bring your First Harvest Goal Setting Journaling Practice to a close, choose a mantra to guide you into this season of change from the First Harvest to the Second Harvest in late September.
First Harvest Mantras & Intention Prompts:
- I Distribute My Lessons & Learnings: I Disseminate, Convey, & Share the wisdom by ____.
- I see more clearly and express gratitude for the shadows coming to light, I am ____.
- I feel grateful that my intention is coming into form in the perfect way. I receive with gratitude.
