Gibbous Moon enters Gemini

"I'm one with the Goddess
and open to Her Wisdom."

16th Day of the 12th Lunar Cycle
Ruled by Gaia
Lunar Tree Cycle ~ Ngetal/Reed
Celtic Tree Cycle ~ Ruis/Elder
Moon Phase: Gibbous
Moon sets: 6:50AM EST
Moon rises: 4>07PM EST
Moon in Taurus v/c 8:37AM EST
Moon enters the Mutable Air Sign of Gemini at 9:22AM EST
Rhiannon's Cycle of the Moon
Lunar Meditation: The cordial of praise
Sun in Sagittarius
Sunrise: 7:26AM EST
Sunset: 4:52PM EST
Solar Question for the Day: "What are you attempting to manifest now?"
Samhain (Calan Gaeaf) Quarter of the Year
December 1st, 2009

    First day of a new month - December - in a few weeks the Winter Solstice will happen, then the days will gradually be getting longer.  There are Major magickal energies today for spells/rite regarding Education and the correspondences are the element of Air, the color Yellow, the tarot card Knight of Swords, and the runeKenaz.   There are minor magickal energies for spells/rituals regarding courage and the correspondences are the element of Fire, the color Red, the tarot card Strength and the rune Eihwaz.

   Also this month there will two Full Moons - one tomorrow night and another one on December 31st.
Full Moon Magic for December




This December, there will be two full moons. As the first December full moon approaches, it is a good time to make some plans for celebrating the Esbat. Taking the time each month to notice and celebrate the full moon is a profound way to recognize and experience the beauty, guidance and love of the Goddess.



The first December full moon is this upcoming Wednesday, December 2 (for those who care about such details, according to the 2009 Lunaria day planner, the exact time of the full moon is 12:31 am, mountain time) and the sign the full moon will be in is Gemini. When the moon is in Gemini, it is a good time to work on communication, writing projects, gathering scattered thoughts, efforts involving teaching or learning and social endeavors.

As we are approaching the winter solstice, it would also be appropriate to work with the Mother during the full moon as she prepares to birth the Sun God. Meditate on the pregnant full moon and ask her what Mother Goddess and Solar God you should work with at Yule. Candle magic and cooking/baking magic work well for spellcrafting at this full moon.

The full moon in December is known as the Oak Moon, a reminder of the upcoming battle of the Holly King and the Oak King and a chance to focus on the magical meaning and value of the oak tree. Any ritual or spell centered on working with the oak would be appropriate for your December Esbat. This full moon is also known as the Long Night's Moon or the Moon of Long Nights due to the fact that the days are getting shorter and the nights longer as we approach the solstice. Other names for this moon include Cold Moon, Wolf Moon and Big Winter Moon.



For those having a difficult time thinking up ways to celebrate full moon Esbats, there are plenty of good books out there to provide ideas, such as Grandmother Moon by Zsuzsanna E. Budapest, Moon Magick: Myth & Magic, Crafts & Recipes, Rituals & Spells by D.J. Conway, Praise to the Moon by Elen Hawke, Magick & Rituals of the Moon by Edain McCoy and Everyday Moon Magic by Dorothy Morrison. Some of these books are out of print, but they are easy to come by either online or in stores selling used books.



The second full moon in December is December 31, 2009 at 12:14 pm, mountain time and the sign it will be in is Cancer. As the first full moon after the winter solstice, it is considered by some traditions of witchcraft to be the most powerful full moon of the year. It is also a Blue Moon because it is the second full moon in December and it coincides with both New Year's eve and a partial lunar eclipse. More information about the second full moon in December will appear in a future article closer to that date.

From:  http://www.examiner.com/x-10755-Denver-Wicca-Examiner~y2009m11d29-Full-moon-magic-for-December-part-1?cid=examiner-email
 
 
Continue - so you want to be a witch .....  continuing on with your Book of Shadows -
 
    To get the most out of your own BOS, you must write it yourself. Words written by you stick in your head more securely than words that are spoken by you or read to you. Writing is a slow process, and by writing things down, you'll find that concepts will clarify themselves and new questions will arise to guide your spiritual growth. If you're not going to get the most out of writing, then you'd better rethink your interests in Witchcraft because nost of it is just plain old hard work and requires a substantial investment of time and personal energy to master.
 
  Many modern Witches keep their Book of Shadows on computers, and this is fine as long as the Witch types the information him/her self. All this means is that photocopying and downloading information are not the ways to keep your book. Do your own typing or writing to get the most benefit from it.