Hello and welcome.
I'd like to invite you to join me under the light of the Sturgeon Moon,
The full moon of August.
The full moon is an exciting opportunity to pause and reflect and also to prepare for what lies ahead.
This moon takes its name from the great sturgeon fish that has swum through Earth's waters for over a hundred million years.
The sturgeon moon is a symbol of abundance,
Endurance and strength.
It reminds us that growth is not always fast,
That sometimes it is the slow and steady path that leads us towards the most meaningful lives.
Let's begin by getting comfortable,
Closing down our eyes and focusing on our breath.
Taking a full deep breath in and a long slow breath out.
Settling here for a moment with deep calming breaths.
The sturgeon survives not through speed or force,
But through persistence and presence.
It glides through waters with patience,
Trusting the deep wisdom of its body to guide the way.
Tonight under this moon we are offered the same invitation to slow down,
To breathe and to reconnect with what is steady and strong within us.
I'd like to invite you to call to mind something you've built,
Nurtured or overcome this season.
Maybe it's a project,
A relationship or even a deeper sense of self.
Take a moment to feel gratitude for the effort and resilience within you.
The moon is also a reminder of the turning seasons.
The days are slowing,
Autumn and the harvest wait patiently on the sidelines.
The sturgeon moon is not only a time to gather,
But also to prepare,
To release what no longer serves us and to clear space for what's next.
I'd like you to ask yourself,
What am I ready to let go of?
Are there old habits,
Fears or stories that are ready to be gently laid down?
Release doesn't always mean discarding,
Sometimes it means softening or simply saying,
Not now.
What are you ready to let go of?
Now imagine yourself standing at the edge of a quiet lake in the evening.
The sky is lowering into the night and the full moon begins to shine a light on the lake,
A ribbon of silver light across the water.
You watch quietly as a large sturgeon glides just beneath the surface.
Feel its strength,
Feel its calm,
Feel its wisdom and know that that same wisdom lives in you.
As you watch the moon's reflection shimmer on the lake's surface,
Take a moment to honour the path that you've walked,
The challenges,
The growth and the lessons you've learned along the way.
If it feels aligned,
Affirm to yourself,
I honour what I've harvested and what I now choose to release.
Let these words settle into your body like the moonlight on the water.
Begin to return to your breath now,
Inhale deeply through your nose and exhale to release the tension in your body.
Exhale gently through your mouth,
Gently bring movement back into your fingers,
Into your toes,
Roll your shoulders,
Maybe stretch softly or sway from side to side.
Let your body move however it needs.
And when you're ready,
Open your eyes and carry with you the wisdom of the sturgeon moon.
Let it remind you of your strength,
Your resistance and the sacred timing of letting go.