My response is this:
Keep it simple.
Let go of the feeling that you must have Michaelmas "stuff."
You don't have to buy anything.
Really.
Resist should dos.
Embrace what's around you.
You don't need special toys or a sword and a cape or a scale, not even a picture of the Archangel Michael for the littles (the under nine crowd.)
You don't have to buy figures for the nature table.
Notice the gifts Mother Nature is offering at this time of year: beautifully colored leaves, apples, acorns, seed pods... bring them in, make it pretty - there's your nature table. You might like to sew and add a simple gnome from an old sweater that got felted in the dryer and is ready for a new purpose, for gnomes are the elemental beings of autumn.
Resist talking about the Archangel Michael or a festival with the children younger than second grade.
Really.
We want to share it all with them, we love it so much. Save a little for the years ahead.
Let second grade be the year of learning about the Archangel Michael.
Young children look to us to learn what it means to be human. They need to see us finding joy and meaning within. They don't need names for this harvest festival, they need experiences. Of seeing a task through. Of harvesting marigold seeds or fruits or vegetables or nuts. Of putting the garden to rest. Of playing in the leaves. Of taking the sweaters and hanging them to air. Of washing the lawn furniture and preparing it for winter. Of sweeping leaves off the deck. Of picking apples and bring some to a neighbor. Of baking pies and sharing one with someone who could use some sweetness in their life.
You don't have to craft anything or even to learn a whole circle this week.
Embrace simple.
Let your celebration flow out of your life.
It won't look like the Waldorf school.
You're not a Waldorf school.
You're a mom or a dad, living in a home creating a culture of your family.
Your celebration will suit your family and your life.
A few examples of what I mean by simple:
:: Tell one story of courage.
:: Go apple picking.
:: Polish apples with a flannel cloth from the ragbag, with care.
:: Cut an apple in half horizontally and discover (with a feeling of awe and wonder) the star inside.
:: Go out in the evening and wonder in amazement at the stars.
:: Roast vegetables in the fire ~ corn, potatoes, carrots, onion, something yummy.
:: Gather marigold seeds from the dry and dead flower heads.
:: Make seed packets from watercolor paintings for your marigold seeds. Put them away in a dry spot to "sleep" over the winter.
"For the young child, Michaelmas is a harvest festival, a time to savor the harvest, roast vegetables, polish apples, cut them in half to discover the stars within and celebrate through song, story and food the gifts and wonders of nature and all her beauteous bounty. Michaelmas is also a time for purposeful work." More here
Simple. Simple.
Read up on Michaelmas for adults, and walk with that, carry it along in your being, and just notice how it feels, what comes up for you. What inspires your courage?
