Cover Reveal!!!

Cover Reveal!!!

Judith Ashley is the author of The Sacred Women's Circle series, romantic fiction that honors spiritual traditions that nurture the soul.

Finally the covers for all seven books in The Sacred Women's Circle are complete - thanks to the creativity of Christy Caughie's Gilded Heart Design.

Sophia is the story I'm writing as I schedule this post. I know Sophia because she has been in every book since Lily. She sent out the flyer that brought this group of women together. From diverse backgrounds, they found a way to create a spiritual practice that nurtures their individual souls.

An underlying theme in many of the books is food. Jackson, the hero in Lily, makes a killer spaghetti sauce and home made ice cream and toppings. Grant, the hero in Hunter (book five) enters into a contest with Jackson to determine who makes the best ice cream. Giovanni, the hero in Gabriella, first appears in Lily. He shows up in the other books in competition with Jackson. An Italian by birth and still living in Italy, Giovanni whips up his own version of spaghetti sauce, fresh pasta, homemade bread.

However, the most consistent cook is Sophia. She is known for her decadent peanut butter and chocolate cookies, brownies, pecan sticky buns, cinnamon rolls and a chocolate cake that is to die for. The aroma of fresh baked bread, homemade soups and stews permeate the air and delight the taste buds of everyone who enters her house.

In addition to her cooking, Sophia has a garden. Her over-sized lot is eighty percent garden and more than half of the space is dedicated to fruits and vegetables. One of the blessings of her prolific garden is she shares. Throughout the year, she gifts not only the members of The Circle with flowers and produce but others as well.

Working in her garden, Sophia sees the Wheel of Life turn. Seeing the new sprouts, the new buds, the new signs of life coming back each year feeds her on every level. I'm eager to see how she deals with the hero, a jaded, cynical cop who has lost the ability to see the good in the world around him.

You can learn more about The Sacred Women’s Circle series on my website.

Check out my Windtree Press author page.

Follow me on Twitter: @JudithAshley19

I’m also on Facebook

© 2016 Judith Ashley

Dark Moon

November 3 was the Dark Moon, sometimes called the New Moon. It is the time of the lunar month when there is little light from the Grandmother.

(Moon = Grandmother; Sun = Grandfather in some traditions and I tend to think of the moon as Grandmother much more than I think of the sun as Grandfather - why? thoughts for another day).

I invited four people to share that evening with me and two were able to join in. Since the three of us come from different earth-based spiritual traditions it was a blending of sorts with my adding what I know from Wicca to my own spiritual practice.

After calling in spirits or guides and to some extent casting a circle, we spent some time just being with each other and the fire before sharing what we want to bring forth during the waxing moon. This isn't so much about manifesting a complete project so much as it is about creating the stepping stones that will bring us to that point in our lives where we want to be.

For me, it is about concentrating on my physical health while I continue to write my stories. (I've a new short story First Love  up at Free Reads From The Genre-istas). Sometimes finding and keeping balance in my life is so much easier said than done!

The Wheel of the Year continues to turn---

We'll be together again, before the fire, to celebrate the Dark Moon on December 3rd. If you do not have a group to join and don't have a fireplace or an outdoor fire  pit, light a candle, turn off all the lights and sit with your focus on the flame. What do you want to bring forth between now and the Full Moon? What do you want to manifest over this next year? If you are alone, write it down or journal about your experience.

This is a journey - dark moon to full moon, full moon to dark moon, dark moon to full moon, full moon to dark moon - and so it goes.

Blessed Be.

Reflections from Samhain

Three of us celebrated Samhain together sitting around a fire pit drinking a bit of mulled wine and sharing our memories of Samhain's past and what this beginning of the turning of the wheel of the year meant to each of us. After general sharing we called in the elements and directions and honored those who've crossed the veil by telling stories about what they meant to us and still mean to us today. Besides the mulled wine, we had lemon poppy seed scones and later, wine.

One thing we all agreed on was that finding community was important to us. Sharing these traditions can be done through a solitary practice but there is also benefit in being part of community practice. My two friends have belonged to larger pagan communities while I've attended a few larger events but have not belonged to a larger community.

Recently I'd read about celebrating the Dark Moon. Something about that struck a chord and I shared that I wanted to add that to my practice. Both women were interested.

Out I went and finally found an outdoor fireplace that my granddaughter and her boyfriend set up for me. Tonight is the Dark Moon of November. Three of us (not the same three) will gather and celebrate this darkest time of the month. We'll spend some time reflecting by the fire on what we want to manifest during the waxing moon (from now until the Full Moon in a couple of weeks). Sharing is optional. I've already looked ahead - the Dark Moon of December is on Tuesday, 12/03/2013 and the Dark Moon of January is actually Wednesday, January 1!

My plan is, if possible we'll be outside but if it is raining, we can gather inside - in front of the fireplace. We'll keep the lights off because this is the dark time of the month and we are moving to the dark time of the year. From my perspective, part of the purpose is to be in the dark, in the void, to use that time or reflect on where we've been as well as where we want to go.

I've asked myself and am now asking you:
What do you want to bring forth during this next turning of the wheel?
What do you want to manifest during this waxing moon?

My prayer for you:
May your path this waxing moon move you ever closer to manifesting your desires.

Blessed Be