🌕 The Long Nights Moon Afterglow:
A Spell for the Portal Between Fullness and Letting Go
Tonight we stand within a rare and powerful threshold—the full-moon portal, a luminous window of roughly 72 hours in which the moon’s energy is at its height. The ancients knew this phase not as a single instant, but as a sacred corridor: a stretch of time where the veil of intuition thins, where the tides of the heart rise, and where magic leans close enough to whisper in your ear.
Last night, the Long Nights Moon reached her exact peak at 6:14pm Eastern.
But tonight?
Tonight we walk inside her afterglow, a gentler yet deeper magic—
the place where insight settles, truth crystallizes, and release becomes possible.
This full moon in Gemini, messenger of air and duality, scatters silver sparks across our thoughts. She invites curiosity, clarity, cleverness, and discernment. And because we are crossing into the dark womb of Yule, this lunar afterglow becomes a lantern guiding us into Winter’s rest, asking us to shed what cannot follow us into the returning light.
In Celtic folklore, the Long Nights Moon was honored as the torch-bearer leading to the Solstice—the moon that helps us see inside ourselves when the outer world has gone quiet. It was the moon of storytellers, seers, and hearth-keepers, the moon that helped a village prepare its soul for rebirth.
Tonight, we take our place among them.
🌕 A Full-Moon Afterglow Spell for the Turning of the Year
Gemini herbs, winter crystals, and your breath as the bridge
You will need:
Mugwort + lavender tea (for dreaming and clarity)
Blue kyanite or labradorite (for insight, intuition, and truth-speaking)
A white or silver candle
A journal
Optional: incense of frankincense or jasmine to honor ancient midwinter rites
Begin by lighting your candle. Let the flame stand as your beacon in the long night.
Hold your crystal in your palm. Whisper your name into it—not your outer name, but the one your soul answers to.
Sip your tea slowly. Feel your breath steady.
Then speak this spell aloud or in the quiet language of your heart:
“Long Nights Moon, keeper of the threshold,
I step into your afterglow.
Illuminate what is true, dissolve what is done.
May my mind be clear, my voice be free,
my path open toward the solstice light.
I release what cannot travel with me,
and I call in what is ready to root and rise.”
When you feel the shift— and you will— place your crystal over your heart and close your eyes. Let Gemini’s winds sweep through your inner landscape. Let Yule’s darkness cradle what is not yet ready to bloom. When you’re finished, blow out the candle with gratitude.
🔮 A Full-Moon Portal Tarot Spread
A perfect companion for the afterglow
Moon’s Lantern – What truth is finally illuminated for me now?
Shadow in the Snow – What must I release before Yule?
Gemini’s Gift – What duality or contradiction in me is ready to harmonize?
Roots in the Dark – What is quietly beginning to grow?
The Returning Light – What blessing follows me into the next cycle?
📓 Journaling Prompts for Past, Present, Future
Past:
What patterns or stories have reached their natural end this year?
What truths were whispered to me that I wasn’t ready to hear until now?
Present:
What is the moon inviting me to release in this afterglow?
Where am I being asked to soften, listen, or change direction?
Future:
What new identity or intention wants to emerge as I cross into the Solstice season?
How can I honor the slow, sacred pace of winter while still tending my dreams?
🥣 A Celtic-Inspired Snack for Tonight’s Magic
Midwinter Honey Oatcakes with Sea Salt
Simple. Earthy. Ancestral.
Oats for grounding, honey for sweetness through the dark, sea salt for protection.
Enjoy with your tea as an offering to both your body and the moon.
🌙 Closing Blessing
May this Long Nights Moon hold you gently in her silver palms,
May her afterglow wash your mind clear as winter air,
And may her portal deliver you into Yule with a heart unburdened,
A spirit steady,
And a future quietly glowing with possibility.