If you don’t know this holiday, you may still have noticed that, as hot and bright as our days continue to be, the force of the sun has begun to wane. You may begin to carefully picture the arrival of fall, and if that doesn’t feel like a fun idea, it may be encouraging to imagine the long-awaited and much-enjoyed force of the sun simply moving from its lofty heights and down to where we need it, into the grain to help it ripen. Change is not loss: the “sun god” is sacrificed for our nourishment. The visible light sinks into the cell walls of the grain, making mitochondria, allowing the immortal fire to enter our very bodies as we consume the first bread of the season.
Also called the “first harvest,” Lammas is a moment to register the abundance to come, and to gently contemplate the cold months ahead. As we move into the second half of summer, energy becomes nourishment, which in its time, will transform back to energy, and just when we’re sure to need it!