Latest posts by Zita Christian
Read my latest blog articles
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Lammas, the First Harvest Festival: Pay Debts? Forgive Debts?
In the Old World of my Celtic ancestors, August marked the beginning of the harvest season. Country fairs called people from the fields where they grew crops and from the open lands where they grazed herds. August heralded a time to acknowledge hard work and enjoy its rewards. Lughnasadh, Lammas, and the Highland Games The…
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Dementia Podcast Shortlisted for 2025 International Women’s Podcast Award
I’m a Finalist! What does my dementia caregiving podcast have in common with a CNN podcast? Or a podcast on ABC Radio? A Stak podcast about ballet’s underbelly? The National Prison Radio podcast? A North Carolina podcast on the NPR network? Stanford’s storytelling project podcast? And a podcast on the BBC? Out of almost 700…
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Ritual: Winter Solstice Messages from the Trees
It’s mid-December. The trees are bare, the ground frozen. Daylight disappears around 4 pm. Here in the Northern Hemisphere, the Winter Solstice marks the longest night of the year. Festivities celebrate the promise that the Sun, with its life-giving warmth, is making its way back to us. With the season of snow, sleet and ice is…
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Rite of Passage: Wife to Widow
The rituals I share on this website and the items you’ll find in my shop were all created with magic in mind. Some were created from the magic of love. Let me explain. For seven years, I devoted myself to caring for my husband. He had Alzheimer’s. Our journey came with the heartbreak you…
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Ritual: Oathing Stones
DARE YE VOW ON AN OATHING STONE? Hearken back now to a time long ago when the land was always viewed as the home of the ancestors. Everyone knew that the spirits of loved ones who had died now guided and protected those still walking the earth. Everyone understood that physical survival in this world…
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Rites of Passage: Funerals
Whatever your spiritual beliefs, death creates a threshold between the world of the living and the world of the dead. When we think of a funeral as a rite of passage, we’re referring not to the deceased but to those left behind. For the survivors, life is irrevocably changed by the death of someone significant,…
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Rites of Passage: Weddings
By its nature, a rite of passage is a ceremony intentionally practiced and witnessed by a group whose members affirm that the person who completed the actions of the rite has been irrevocably changed. Thinking about the elements of today’s weddings and funerals, I can see why writer Ronald L. Grimes says ritual may have…
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The Dilemma of Dementia and Driving: Taking away the keys?
Your spouse has Alzheimer’s. You know he – or she – shouldn’t be driving. When you bring up the subject, you hear some version of, “That’s ridiculous! I know how to drive a car.” He might be right. He might still know how to drive a car. The problem is that he shouldn’t be driving…