The Equinoxes are the points in the year when all parts of the planet receive the same amount of light from the Sun. It is a moment of planetary balance. And, it is the one day of the year that the sun rises and sets at exact east and west. Here in Albuquerque, the Equinox is on Friday 9/22 at 2:02 pm (find your time here  or here).

My daily-life calendar and the solar/earth calendar don’t always match up. For earth, this is a time the harvest winds down; it is the height of autumn, moving us on the path inward for winter. For me instead of winding down, this is the time that things get very busy. School starts, classes are full, and this year I have new projects coming into being.* Finding balance seems an elusive dream.

But this year, I’ve marked out time on Friday afternoon to sit and let the sun and the earth hold me in their balance. Just as plants die away and leaves fall, I’m figuring out what I’m leaving behind to bring myself into balance.

Take a moment to find out when the Autumn Equinox happens in the place where your feet will connect to the earth (find your time here  or here) and mark your calendar. Give yourself even just a few minutes, outside if possible. Feel the gravity of the earth pull you towards Her, and sink into Her embrace. Breathe in the moment of balance and allow clarity to wash over you. Give thanks for the beauty and bounty of our lives.

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Historical and Astrological Tidbits on Mid-Autumn:  Mid-Autumn is the Fall Equinox. Equinox means “balance”, and this is the point when the dark and light of the day are most at balance. On a global scale, the equinoxes are at the points of the year when the entire world is in balance, with both Southern and Northern hemispheres receiving about the same amount of light. The equinox has another important feature as well: it is the only point during the year that the Sun rises in exact east and sets in exact west.  For while the Sun “stands still” at the solstices, the Sun moves very rapidly across the horizon at the equinoxes, leaving only one day to calibrate to the east and west. The Fall Equinox festival is also called Mabon (derived from Welsh mab meaning “son” or “boy”);Harvest Home (in British Isle traditions the time when the harvest is complete); and the Witches’ Thanksgiving. Astrologically, Mid-Autumn may be calculated as the date the Sun is at 0° Libra, which usually occurs between September 21-22.

Award winning writer Anne Key is the author of two memoirs. The first, Desert Priestess: a memoir, relates the three years she spent as Priestess of the Temple of Goddess Spirituality Dedicated to Sekhmet, located in Nevada. Her second, Burlesque, Yoga, Sex and Love: A Memoir of Life under the Albuquerque Sun, recounts her time in Albuquerque performing under the stage name Annie O’Roar. She is co-founder of Goddess Ink.  

*Her newest collaboration is the Jade Oracle deck, featuring deities from Ancient Mexico.