Wreaths

 

Merry meet.

Wreaths have been around at least since Ancient Greece where those made of laurel, representing the circle of eternal life, were displayed at funerals. As their popularity rose, they were used as symbols of power, honor, and victory (which led to warning against “resting on your laurels”).

The Ancient Etruscans – who predated Romans on the Italian peninsula – made crown-wreaths of ivy, laurel, oak, myrtle, and olive leaves, sometimes incorporating vines and wheat.

Evergreen wreaths were included in Christmas celebrations by Germans in the 16th century, but were used in pagan solstice rituals centuries before that across Europe. Holly and mistletoe were also sometimes used. Hung on the home’s front door, those wreaths were symbolic of the wheel of the year while the evergreens symbolized nature’s undying power and the promise spring would follow winter.

 

 

In Scandinavia, harvest wreaths of braided wheat straw hung on doors year round for protection and to assure a good harvest the following year.

 

 

The list goes on and on. And so do the possibilities of making a wreath for your home or a crown for your head. I made one that serves both purposes. With limited space on my skoolie (school bus turned RV), multi-use is a big plus. Taking vines and branches at Samhain, I wove and wound them together in a circle that fit my head. That allows for both wearing during ritual and hanging at other times.

 

 

For Yule, I added holly, some acorns and a mushroom and set a candle in the middle of the wreath set up in a power grid.

 

 

At Imbolic I will stick in white flowers along with some greenery. There will be eggs on my Ostara wreath… and so on around the wheel of the year as I commemorate nature’s rhythms with natural elements.

At the end of the year, I intend to burn it and make another … and perhaps a few for gifting.

Merry part. And merry meet again.

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About the Author:

Lynn Woike

thewitchonwheels.com

All my life I have known magic was real. As a child, I played with the fae, established relationships with trees and “just knew things.” In my maiden years I discovered witchcraft and dabbled in the black-candles-and-cemeteries-at-midnight-on-a-fullmoon magick just enough to realize I did not understand its power. I went on to explore many practices including Zen, astrology, color therapy, native traditions, tarot, herbs, candle magic, gems, and, as I moved into my mother years, Buddhism, the Kabbalah and Reiki. The first man I dated after my divorce was a witch who reintroduced me to the Craft, this time by way of the Goddess. For 11 years I was in a coven, but with retirement, I have returned to an eclectic solitary practice. When accepting the mantle of crone, I pledged to serve and teach. This is what I do from my skoolie – a 30-year-old school bus converted into a tiny house on wheels that I am driving around the country, following 72-degree weather, emerging myself into nature, and sharing magic with those I meet. Find me at thewitchonwheels.com, Facebook and Instagram.