Things to do in the Red Tent: Circular Moon Calendars and Moonwheels for Cycle Tracking

One of the things I like to have available on the resource table at our local Red Tent Circle is an assortment of circular calendar templates for cycle   tracking. These have a variety of formats and expressions, but have in common the circular shape and the intention of tuning in to our full social, emotional, mental, energetic, and physical cycle during each month. I’ve noticed that it is common to focus only on the menstrual phase of the cycle and to almost ignore the energetic and emotional shifts that occur at other points of the month, so I love the holistic, integrative understanding this type of cycle calendar brings into our lives. I am partial to the Moonwheel, created by Shekhinah Mountainwater, and naturally, I incorporate Womanrunes into mine each day. I usually choose a rune spontaneously and note its symbol on the calendar as my rune of the day and I often choose a rune intentionally as well, based on what I’d like to bring into the day. For example, I might put The Sun in on a day when I’m feeling energetically low and in need of some brightness and healing.

Here are some possible formats for moon calendars that you might like to share with your own Red Tent or Women’s Circle. Or, just benefit from on your own!

• miranda-gray-moon-dial.pdf: Miranda Gray is the author of Red Moon, which we also have on our resource table at the Red Tent. She is the creator of the Moon Dial for cycle tracking and has a lot of good articles and resources about emotional phases as well.
• Making a Moonwheel – Moonspell Grove Library: This is an older website with quite a few broken links, but it does have an original version of Shekhinah’s Moon Wheel (also available in her book Ariadne’s Thread)
• Lunar Phenology Wheels | Cheeky Magpie: A newly added link, these downloads can be used to track many different aspects (including monthly intentions) and include a blank monthly template as well as seasonal templates.
• Spirit & Sol: MOON CALENDAR PLAYSHEET// FREE DOWNLOAD: One of my favorite birth artists, Catie Atkinson of Spirit Y Sol, recently put up her version of a monthly moon calendar and it is great as well!
• Magical Moon Musings: Rebecca of Your Shero’s Journey has a lot of wonderful resources to offer about moon wisdom as well as her version of a moondial-type moon calendar. She is a treasure trove of information about moon cyles, particularly about the emotional impact

  

  of moon phases (which for some women seem more impactful that their physical cycle’s phases)

Another favorite Red Tent resource that contains tons of fabulous information about the energetic ebbs and flows of the menstrual cycle and how to work with the phases and changes is Moon Time: Harness the ever-changing energy of your menstrual cycle: by Lucy H. Pearce.

And, as I noted, my own Womanrunes book and cards are a wonderful complement to any moonwheel type calendar, since the easily drawable symbols may readily be incorporated into your calendar either as a daily “message,” a complement to your feelings and experiences, or as a consciously chosen intentional focus point or area for attraction. (Feel free to explore Womanrunes in a starter class for free here: Introduction to Womanrunes)

I also have a Moondalas and Moonwheels mini class that includes a booklet of templates as well as step-by-step processes. You can get the class for only $10 with the discount code “moonwheel.”

Have fun!

If you’d like to explore many more resources and techniques for the Red Tent as well as delving into the messy, beautiful real-life work of practical priestessing, I invite you to join me in our seven week Practical Priestessing or Red Tent Initiation courses.