We ponder graveyard work to be done in the coming months, and begin crafting products<\/a> to assist with communication<\/a> with the dead<\/a>. And we and a number of our friends are wrestling with fresh loss and grief. And so it goes. <\/p>\n Part of our regular practice includes tending an ancestral shrine and offerings to the spirits of the dead. I’ll blog more about that in the coming weeks leading up to Hallows, but for now, I’ll offer this simple prayer to Our Lady of the Underground written by an anonymous author. For those of you looking to start working with the spirits of the dead, or for those of you who have recent losses, it’s a fine place to start. We’ve been quiet here for the last couple of weeks, but we’ve been fairly busy. We celebrated Lammastide by feasting on fresh produce from the garden and performing our traditional rites of purification and transformation. We bid farewell to the Red King (Le roi est mort, vive le roi!), and drank good Kentucky bourbon in … Continue reading To Our Lady of the Churchyards<\/span>
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\n“Lady of the oldest churchyards,
\nLady of moss-covered stone,
\nLady of the land where row upon row
\nOf crosses stand, hold out your hand
\nAnd soothe the souls that come your way.
\nShow them through the shining door,
\nRock them gently in your arms
\nTo slumber in more peace and calm
\nThan they ever found in life.
\nLady of the quiet slant of sunlight
\nOn the crumbling words of grief,
\nWash the sorrow from our eyes
\nAs from the souls of the fearful dead,
\nAnd help us come to peace as well
\nWith all the mournful losses of the world.”<\/em><\/strong>
\n![\"Our](\"http:\/\/www.otherworld-apothecary.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Our-Lady-Underground.jpg\")
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