Today is the full moon. On my calendar this moon is listed as the Mourning Moon. Perhaps it is so named this year because it falls so close to the Day of the Dead and All Hallows Eve. Certainly this is the time of year to honor those who have gone before us and the dying of the year that is mirrored in the landscape.

I have finished the first project from Susan Barrett Merrill's book Zati: The Art of Weaving a Life. It is an amulet bag. In history an amulet bag was like a concentration of intention, held together in a very small bag or bundle. Traditionally a stone, pollen, shells, feathers or any other sacred items could be included that would represent the intention of the maker and/or wearer. For this bag I followed the instructions that placed a red thread at the center of the weaving. The red reminds me to remain centered in my life. That only when my mind is calm and my heart centered can I make the right decisions and see life in the right way -- to follow the sacred path. I tried to keep that in mind as I wove the little bag. It is made entirely from wool as it seemed to me that something with intention to honor the natural world should be made of natural fibers. The two little light colored beads at the top of the bag are made from hand carved bone. I put them on the necklace part before braiding it together and was amused to find that they ended up looking like two little souls

who had come to ride along in the bag. They seem happy enough so I left them. The rest of the fringe (I do like fringe!) sports small glass red beads. These red beads remind me of the red thread that runs through the weaving representing the sacred path, and like life, the sacred is scattered all around us.

This bag has inspired me to make more, in fact I think it could become addictive!

On this beautiful fall day my wish for you is that you may walk your sacred path with peaceful heart and a happy soul.