Summer Solstice blessings to you all! This year (2024) the moment of Summer Solstice in the northern hemisphere occurs today, June 20, at 4:51 p.m. US Eastern Time (9:51 p.m. GMT).

The first Full Moon after Summer Solstice occurs tomorrow, June 21, at 9:08 p.m. US Eastern Time ( or just over the line into the next day, 2:08 a.m. GMT, June 22, and so on further east). So there's very little time between Solstice and the next Full Moon.

Because of that, today I'm sharing this new pair of observances in the Tribe calendar. With the addition of the festivals below, our sacred calendar is complete.

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The time surrounding the Summer Solstice in the Ariadne's Tribe sacred calendar now mirrors the time surrounding the Winter Solstice, the two halves of the year in reflective balance.

In the wintertime, we have the season of Therasia's Labor that leads up to Winter Solstice, followed by the Winter Serpent Days and then the Blessing of the Waters on the first Full Moon after Solstice.

In the summer, we have the season of Summer Weaving leading up to Summer Solstice. What about after the Solstice?

Of course, there must also be Summer Serpent Days - a time out of time, a series of intercalary days whose length varies from year to year with the fluctuations in the cycles of the Sun and the Moon. The Summer Serpent Days are the days between Summer Solstice and the first Full Moon that follows it.

As with the Winter Serpent Days, the Summer Serpent Days are a time for divination for the upcoming half-year, for looking between and behind the obvious things to find what we really need to see. In a sense, the Summer Serpent Days are an after-Solstice reflection of Summer Weaving, so divination should focus on subjects of connection with others, whether human or divine.

Then the Serpent Days end, and we celebrate the first Full Moon after Summer Solstice: The Water Mirror.

What do we do on this day? Make a water mirror, of course! Specifically, a solar-themed one. You'll need a bowl with a light-colored interior and a small, non-soluble item for an offering - a glossy stone, for instance. Fill the bowl with water. Please note that at no time during this ritual should you look at your own reflection in the water. Take the filled bowl outside at midday and wait until the surface is still, then shift it gently until a reflection of the Sun is centered on the water.

Once the Sun is centered, drop the offering item into the water. Wait until the ripples have stilled. You may choose to scry in the water at this point if you wish, but it's not required.

Dispose of the water either by pouring it, along with the offering item, into a larger body of water - a lake or river, for instance - or by leaving it out until after sunset then pouring the water and the offering item onto the ground. Do not retrieve or reuse the offering item; it doesn't belong to you anymore.

This year (2024) we have the unusual occurrence of the Full Moon falling on the day after Summer Solstice, so our Summer Serpent Days have squished themselves into a mere 24 hours this time! This means we'll celebrate Solstice one day and the Water Mirror the next.

In case you're wondering, if the Full Moon falls on the day of Summer Solstice, the Summer Serpent Days last a full lunation, ending on the Full Moon four weeks later.

Whenever the celestial events occur, we celebrate their beauty and marvel at the natural cycles that surround us.

Together we are joy!