A Very Mild Mabon

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(Note for my non-pagan readers: Mabon is a harvest Sabbat that takes place at the Autumn Equinox. There are a lot of ways to celebrate, all focused on fall and balance. The most common I have seen is eating everything apple and having a harvest feast. It's a bit like a thanksgiving that hasn't been used to sugarcoat genocide.)

We had planned to go to a friend's bonfire dinner for Mabon, but fate had other ideas. We were sick a few days before the event. I even got tested for covid just to be safe. Thankfully, it came back negative. Even knowing that, we were still hesitant to go. It may not have been covid, but we still did not want to get our friend sick. We disclosed this information to our friend, who told us we were still welcome. However, the morning of, my spouse (the only one of the two of us that drives) appeared to be relapsing. I was also fatigued. We decided to stay in. 

Instead of a large group ritual, I whispered my thanks into the earth, harvested everything in our garden, and prepped it for a veggie bake. We lit candles as I chopped the vegetables. My spouse lightly spiced the food, then put it in the oven. I blessed the house and made mulled cider on the stovetop. Needless to say, our home smelled amazing. Despite still being under the weather, we felt at peace and in balance. We finished the evening with the newest episode of 'Halloween Baking Championship.' 

This very mild Mabon illustrated something important I learned during the pandemic: witchcraft does not need to be large and grandiose. It can help, especially in group rituals, but you are not less of a witch if on a Sabbat you light some candles by yourself and hum a song. This was something that I had to accept during Samhain last year. Since I was teaching in person before the vaccine, it was not safe for me to have friends and family over for any kind of party. And the exhaustion and depression that my job caused spent so much of my energy that I could not throw myself into all the baking and decorating I normally did. I think my spouse even decorated for me while I was at work. I baked a few of our favorites, we had a special dinner and each did a small ritual.

Your craft does not have to be a spectacle. You are not less of a witch if you just have some store bought bread on Lughnasadh because you aren't up for baking it yourself. It's alright to light some candles by yourself on Imbolc. And it is just fine to have a veggie bake and some cider at home on Mabon. Your exhaustion, chronic pain, mental health struggles, financial struggles or lack of like-minded community do not make you less of a witch. There is nothing wrong with going small, as long as you still feel it. As long as you still feel connected to the Sabbat and yourself, there is nothing wrong with how you celebrate. So celebrate, without guilt or obligation. Just celebrate.