Entry for 1 Aug 2007:
Today is Lunasa, Lugnasad, or Lammas, according the French version of the Wikipedia, the Celtic Harvest festival, the “gathering of Lug” (Lug is the king of the Gods in the Celtic pantheon). It was a time of truce, and for the equitable distribution of goods and wealth, and for the arrangement of marriages. It marks the end of Summer and the beginning of Autumn in the Celtic calendar. The may be some connection to ancient corn goddesses, who are still honored in the form of corn dollies, or little figures made of woven wheat straw (which Diane and I collect). Harvest festivals continue in the US today in the form of county fairs, typically held in July or August.
As my mom always notes when I phone her up to wish her well on one of these celtic seasonal celebrations (like Imbolc, Beltaine & Samain), this is also (around) the cross quarter day, that is, a day mid-was between a solstice and an equinox. Cross quarter days are the tipping point into the next season of the year. From now, the days will begin to shorten more rapidly. But for the moment, summer hovers, the days are lovely (generally, it is Scotland, after all), and there is a bit of time before Normal Life begins again.
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