The Spiral Path Book of Days: How it all Started...
In 2011, when one of my circle sisters became pregnant, I wanted to find a gift for her that she would truly cherish, something that would be more meaningful than diapers or another onesie, something that would welcome her into this new era of her life as a mother. I found the One Line a Day Five-Year Memory Book (paid link). It had just enough space to write one line per day. Perfect for a busy mom. When I saw how much she loved it, I realized that I wanted something like this for myself! I had been wanting to commit to a daily journaling practice, but was intimidated by the vast empty space on the pages of the journals I already had. So, I went exploring, and that’s when I came across The Sacred Journey: A Daily Journal for Your Soul by Cheryl Thiele. It fit my needs almost perfectly, the closest I had ever come to finding my journal soul-mate. I customized my Sacred Journey Journal in a way that aligned with my spiritual practice and rhythms, which were becoming heavily influenced by the lunar cycle and astrology. At the end of each year, my journals were filled to the gills with notes, doodles, collages, and keepsakes. I used it faithfully each year from 2012-2015.
One day in December of 2014, as I was cuddled in my favorite chair by the fire, an ice storm raging outside, I had an idea. Following the work of astrologers Emily Trinkaus and Chani Nicholas, I had been learning how to apply planetary transits, particularly New and Full Moons, to my personal natal chart, noticing in which of my houses each celestial event was occurring. I thought, wouldn't it be great to have a journal that I could use with my own birth chart to structure my year, using the New Moons as doorways into each of the houses, focusing my spiritual work on one area of my life at a time. I put the idea on the back burner, not knowing when I would get around to making the dream a reality.
In December of 2015, when I went online to purchase my 2016 edition of the Sacred Journey Journal, I discovered that the creator was taking a break for a year and it was unavailable. I would have to make due with a generic planner, which I customized as best I could. And then something clicked. It was time to put my idea into action. It was time to create my own journal!
In January of 2016, I enlisted two friends and we began working on the first edition of The Spiral Path Book of Days. Early in the process, it became clear that birthing this creative baby wasn’t going to be easy. We each encountered resistance in the form of family challenges, unexpected changes in living situations, grappling with fears of success, and a general lack of energy and motivation. But my creative team still met regularly to inspire each and keep the momentum going, taking one tiny step at a time, while trying not to think about the enormity of what still needed to be done. I settled into a calmly productive rhythm, alternating between short bursts of intensely focused creative work and exquisitely rejuvenating naps. I got the writing done. I finished twelve original paintings that were featured in the book. I marveled at the beautiful illustrations and graphic design that my co-creators produced. It started to feel real.
In October 2016, my circle of chosen sisters gathered for a weekend of Big Magic, and I gave each of them a copy of the journal. I witnessed the impact it had on them to see their entire lives drawn out on a map, how much it effected their sense of belonging, sense of purpose, and sense of trust in their unique way of being. It reminded me of how I felt when I first discovered astrology and started to see the gift in what I thought were my flaws. It was profoundly satisfying to see something that once existed only in my imagination manifest in living color, and have it be appreciated so deeply by others.
In its fourth year, The Spiral Path Book of Days began going through some major re-visioning. I had been using the calendar on my phone to keep track of appointments, tasks, and to-do lists and the Book of Days as my daily journal. But, I realized that I wanted an all-in-one solution to merge my work life with my personal life and magical practice. A marriage of right and left brain, circles and squares, analog and digital. Because walking between the worlds is how I roll. The new version will be a hybrid of the original format and a more standard day planner. It will still follow the lunar cycle, but it will also have weekly/daily layouts with timed slots for planning, and eventually, there will be an online classroom component, so I can cut down the size (and cost) of the printed books by transferring the bulk of the foundational information online.
​
Nature takes Her sweet time to create, and so do I. There is currently no set date for the launch of the new Book of Days. If you want to stay in the loop as this project evolves, subscribe to my newsletter below.
