welcome to: magic in the mundane
in came the buzz of spring with its scent of change
in came the buzz of spring with its scent of change. this is nothing new, for i have been here before. it seems as though retracing my steps to what matters most has turned into a circle, as cycles go. the ouroboros itself.
with great pleasure (and a little bit of tears), i’d like to welcome you all to the new name of my substack:
~ magic in the mundane ~
in autumn of 2020 the words “magic in the mundane” came to me while sitting outside at a park feeling a bout of aloneness. i looked above me and saw in the trees a spider weaving an iridescent rainbow web when the sun hit it just right.
i kept shifting my angle to play with the colors, first the web is there and then it disappears, and now it’s back. focusing and then unfocusing my gaze. no longer feeling alone, my eyes swollen with tears at the complete magic of it. magic in this mundane act of a spider weaving its web in a tree. magic in the realization that if i had not looked up, i would have missed it. in that moment, i wrote the poem that i share at the end of this post. “magic in the mundane” is a phrase that kept coming back to me over and over. as i looked out the window while washing dishes. as i felt the cool spring morning air tickle my flesh. as i listened to the sound of birdsong, a gentle wind stroking my hair. i dedicated a post to this back in 2022 (you can read that post here).
an excerpt:
i found what i was looking for, what i needed. i stretched into this new found space with play and exploration.
i found ritual in the arms of loved ones, sharing words and wine. i found ritual in my morning coffee speckled with cardamom and cinnamon. i found ceremony in eating a meal shared with others at home. i found magic in the way the sun dances through shadow to create pattern, ever-shifting. i found magic in the blank space of potential on a wall. i found magic in watching the lilac buds open, then flourish, then dry all in a matter of a couple of months. i found magic in community. i found magic in snipping a flowering branch and putting it in a vase. i found magic in the dancing altar that is my body. i found my own way of magic.
magic in the mundane
~ it is the presence of beauty and divinity in basic life things. for there is divinity in just feeling the warmth of the sun on your skin. in the smell of my dog. in turning dough into bread. in the evolution of bud into blossom. in witnessing the slow glide of a hawk. in closing your eyes and napping to the sound of bird song and bee. for in all of the heartache and crumblings and uncertainty, there is also the laughter of friends, the full-bosomed buckeye tree, the taste of fresh jam straight off the spoon. it is slow full body nourishment. drinking in the sweet nectar with gratitude and reverence for all of the beauty that we get to witness.
since the release of my poetry/photography book when saturn returned, i have been aching to move my body in a certain way. it truly did feel like a “release” and i knew it was time to shed.
there will be a follow up post to honor my serpente nero era, and to share the journey of how that name came to be. but for today, i will keep it brief to allow space for this transition to settle.
for in this moment, i write while sitting in the sunshine with my dog laying beside me, a bumble bee kissing a little blossom on my little lemon tree, with the smell of bread fresh from the oven, and the heady scent of jasmine beckoning. and i am once again overcome with the tenderness of this life.
what to expect with magic in the mundane?
more sharing of prose, poetry, and film photographs.
invitations to bring more magic into the mundane that will come in various forms: meditations, journal prompts, practices that are within reach to fit in every day life.
sharing songs with one another is a love language. you bet i will continue sharing songs that i am listening to.
book shares. sharing book recs is also a love language, am i right?
tangible offerings: this is my written intention to finally make my pottery and film photograph postcards easier to view and purchase online. more to come on this.
i am as excited as a bee in early spring and so looking forward to alchemizing all of the pollen i’ve collected from all the yummy flowers i’ve been sniffing and turn it into honeyed nectar to share. my intention with this shift is to help remember that there is beauty in abundance to go around.
and now here is the poem that was inspired by the spider weaving glimmering rainbows in the autumn light.
October 26, 2020 may i embody the Mother i honor the Mother by honoring myself not just what comes in the as above but what lies in the so below our mother in the sky and our mother within the flesh of the earth also, remembering the divinity in the mundane cleaning as an act of blessing cooking as intention setting touching dough to hold hands with your ancestors putting bare skin on earth to honor the sacred with every inhale and exhale a marriage between Beloveds putting words down on paper to bring in spirit touching lips to fruit to call in the goddess herself blessing you with each bite blessing her with each bite honoring the mundane the routine as ritual the body, a sacred vessel the life, as ceremony for each cell is the culmination of all who came before each cell, a glance into the future of all that will come after let rose remind you there is divinity in the common and there is wisdom in both petal and thorn -katie shakira
an invitation: next time you walk by a flower, give it a little sniff. maybe eyes closed, maybe eyes open to see the petals up close. what does the smell of that particular flower bring up for you? how does your body react its scent? if you could put a word to its scent, what would it be?
what i’m listening to: this one is short and sweet.
what i’m reading: The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen, by KJ Charles. an intriguing and cheeky love story. i’m about halfway through, it’s been a slow and steady build up of characters and plot with just enough sweet, spicy, and sultry moments.
may the elements hold you with love wherever you are,
katie shakira
Loved every word and intention, excited for more.