Full Moon Cake
Generous, magical, reciprocal, seasonal.
“This abundance of berries feels like a pure gift from the land. I have not earned, paid for, nor labored for them. There is no mathematics of worthiness that reckons I deserve them in any way. And yet here they are—along with the sun and the air and the birds and the rain, gathering in towers of cumulonimbi, a distant storm building. You could call them natural resources or ecosystem services, but the Robins and I know them as gifts. We both sing gratitude with our mouths full.”
-Robin Wall Kimmerer, The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World
She arrives with a lilac gift bag full of goodies for me as we meet for brunch at our favourite garden centre, a halfway gathering point between our homes. I am astonished. So generous it seems, a bag packed with treats for me even though it isn’t my birthday or a special day of celebration. The occasion is that we get to hang out together for a few hours. Away from the demands and intensity of working and mothering and living in this chaotically beautiful world. To slow down and chat and simply be ourselves for a while.
Inside the gift bag there is a bunch of flowers tied with twine, taken from a larger bunch given to her by another friend with the gentle instruction to pass some on to me. A woman I have met only once but who holds me in her heart and thoughts like she has known me forever. Handmade gifts from another. A woman I have not yet met but who knows of me, is cheering my story along as I cheer on her story too. The gifts include a little hand-crafted tray and bookmark made with pressed flowers and kindness. So beautiful.
Tucked in at the bottom of the bag, inside a plastic lunchbox is a slice of rhubarb cake made by my friend, who watches as I unwrap each item, moved so deeply by the tenderness the items represent. Gifts from these women to me. For no reason other than the joy of sharing. What a thing that is.
The cake baking has become a monthly ritual for my good friend. On the day of the full moon, she goes into her kitchen and slowly makes a cake using as many seasonal ingredients as possible. The rhubarb cake was made for the pink moon of April. The rhubarb, grown in my own little garden, was gifted to her the week before along with handknit dishcloths and a big squishy hug. The cake sponge is tinted the softest pink. April full moon pink. Heart full of goodness pink.
When we have eaten our brunch and ordered more tea, we decide to share the cake, nestled in cosily at our favourite window seats, overlooking the shrubs and fruit trees on display outside. It is a sunny day and the garden centre is bustling. We tuck in. Immersed in our own little world of the chat and laughter that only comes with soul-friends. The ease of it all another gift to me after so many years of guarding my own heart.
The cake tastes like love. But of course. It was made with a heart full of intent. To share. To show care. To connect. To create community. It has been baked with a sprinkling of magic to share with full moon sisters. Witchy friends. The ones who hold up and walk beside through the good times and the tough times.
The friend I talk of is in her own season of big life changes. This is the way of things. Seasons of awakening, initiation, shaking off of old narratives and pulling on our new skins that better fit, that feel like our true home, is all part of this journey of life. She is in a time of reclamation of home, of the wild self, the wise self, of voice. It is an honour to share the journey as well as the cake.
The cake is more than just a cake. As if homemade cake is ever just a cake! Women, world over, have been making and baking their magic as an act of love and devotion and deep desire, since forever. There is so much potency in it all. I taste the desire for reciprocal, seasonal, generous, magical, creative living in each mouthful of the slice of rhubarb cake. That it is made for the women who journey with her is a bold and brave declaration of who she wants to be in the world. I want to be that woman too. I want my offerings to my dear ones and the world to be filled with the same love.
May’s full moon is the flower moon. I have made and gifted some lilac syrup using the gorgeously-scented lilac flowers from the meadow near my home where I walk every day with the dogs. It is a magical, wild spot on the edge of our village that is positively humming with life right now. I cannot wait to taste the flower moon cake that will be baked next week to be shared with dear anam cara (soul friends). I have a feeling it will taste of a wild earthiness that no words will quite describe. A holy wildness.
This small act of intentional baking is a powerful thing. Never should we underestimate the potency of even our tiniest creative acts in a world that so often separates and isolates us. A slice of cake baked and shared can be an act of rebellion and a commitment to care in a world that seems to be collapsing in so many ways. Perhaps the small things are really the big things. Perhaps it is the small things that will save us.
Some other women whose words have moved and inspired to me this past while include:
at MotherStack in this piece called f r a g m e n t s: in this piece called Showing up with my Vulnerability: with this gorgeous post and poem: from HAG with this beautiful piece on wild greens, complete with folklore: with this stunning piece on creativity: with this wonderful post on the art of proving yourself wrong:
As always, thank you for joining me here at
. This is a space for my own personal creative exploration. A place to share stories and musings and all sorts in-between and I so appreciate you taking the time to read my words and I invite you to like them or share them if they resonate with you.Happy Weekend to you all.
Kelly x
And thank you so much for the mention, and kindness. You and Annette are two of a rare kind. And you never fail to amaze me with your beautiful way with words .💕
I love the idea of a full moon cake, especially one with such lovingly shared ingredients and created with such love 💚 what lovely friends you have (lots of 'lovely's...I have been told before that it is my favourite word!!