THE MAGIC of MAY DAY

May Day is a sweet old-fashioned celebration of Spring that is mostly overlooked in our culture, but according to lore, it was a festival that celebrated not only the arrival of Spring, but paid homage to Flora, goddess of flowers.

It is one of the corner days which fall between solar festivals of the year (the equinoxes and soltices). The ancient Celts called this holiday Beltane and began celebrating at sunset on April 30th.

Like Halloween, this is a night some claim, that witches, faeries, and ghosts wander freely. The veil between the worlds is thin. Many ancient tales tell of faerie sightings on May 1st.

When my children were young, we celebrated May Day by making fresh flower bouquets from the blooming wild flowers and herbs in my garden and whatever we could scrounge up in the woods. Often our lilac bushes were in bloom and we added sprigs of the heady purple posies. We made a bouquet for each of our nearby relatives and our favorite neighbors....often 20 bundles or more we tied up in a riot of ribbons. 

Then, following May Day ritual lore, we would deliver the flowers to the doorsteps of our family and friends, ring their bell, and run away giggling-thrilled with our secret gift.

The kids are all grown and gone from home now...and I haven't celebrated May Day this way in many years. But, those sweet, magical memories fill me up and make me smile every May1st.

HURRY, SPRING!

Nature reminds us that we are always on a journey from darkness into light. We are formed in the darkness of our mother's womb. Our birth was our first journey into light. Each day we awaken from the night into day. The dawn is a refreshing time-full of possibility and promise. All of nature-stones, fields, rivers, and animals-are suddenly anew in the fresh dawn of light. 

Our year is also a journey of the same rhythm....we come out of the darkness of winter and into the possibility and effervescence of springtime.

These long winter days make me long for that light: the warmth of the sun on my face, the heady air filled with birdsong, the first snowdrops peeking through our persistent snow.

Please hurry, Spring!

SPRING MORNING

A Morning Offering

I bless the night that nourished my heart
To set the ghosts of longing free
Into the flow and figure of dream
That went to harvest from the dark
Bread for the hunger no one sees.

All that is eternal in me
Welcome the wonder of this day,
The field of brightness it creates
Offering time for each thing
To arise and illuminate.

I place on the altar of dawn:
The quiet loyalty of breath,
The tent of thought where I shelter,
Wave of desire I am shore to
And all beauty drawn to the eye.

May my mind come alive today
To the invisible geography
That invites me to new frontiers,
To break the dead shell of yesterdays,
To risk being disturbed and changed.

May I have the courage today
To live the life that I would love,
To postpone my dream no longer
But do at last what I came here for
And waste my heart on fear no more.

~ John O’Donohue ~

THE MAIDEN

In honor of the upcoming Summer Solstice/Midsummer Celebration, Kristin and I have created 'The Maiden'-a beautiful Goddess who celebrates auspicious beginnings, birth, growth, hope and joy.

What is one to say about June,
The time of perfect young summer,
The fulfillment of the promise of the earlier months,
And with as yet no sign to remind one
That its fresh young beauty will ever fade.
~Gertrude Jekyll

MAY DAY MAGIC

Like Candlemas, Lammas, and Halloween, May Day is one of the corner days which fall between solar festivals of the year (the equinoxes and soltices). The ancient Celts called this holiday Beltane and began celebrating at sunset on April 30th. It marked the beginning of summer, time to move with the flocks up to greener pastures.

Like Halloween, this is a night where witches, faeries, and ghosts wander freely. The veil between the worlds is thin. Many ancient tales tell of faerie sightings on May 1st.

When my children were young, we celebrated May Day by making fresh flower bouquets from the blooming wild flowers and herbs in my garden and whatever we could scrounge up in the woods. Often the lilac bushes were in bloom and we added sprigs of those lovely fragrant posies as well. We made one for each of our nearby relatives and our favorite neighbors....20 pots or more we tied up in shimmering ribbons. 

Then, following May Day ritual lore, we would deliver the flowers to the doorsteps of our family and friends, ring their bell, and run away giggling-thrilled with our secret gift.

The kids are all grown and gone from home now...and we haven't celebrated May Day this way in many years. But, those sweet, magical memories fill me up and make me smile every May1st.

FOR THE LOVE OF GREEN

It is the official first day of spring, so I decided I had better choose my theme color of the season. Since my very proud Irish family's favorite holiday has just passed, you may have guessed that I am going with GREEN.

Of course, green must surely be everyone's favorite color right now. After our long, drab winter, it feels good to see the beginning shoots of green life again.

 I love to use different shades of green to paint furniture. And, I am quite partial to green rugs. (The carpet throughout our home is sea green). Green is the color of nature, so it is my way of bringing the outdoors in.

Green is such a positive, energy giving color. Whether it be celadon, chartreuse, clover, fern, kelly, lime, moss, olive, pine or teal....they are all a breath of fresh air.

SEDUCED BY SPRING

I just returned from my morning walk...seduced by the sweet sounds, sights and smells of our blooming woods, I ventured into the thick of it to see what I could see. I came upon two young deer drinking from a small pond formed from our many days of rain, camouflaged perfectly in their soft brown coats, I almost missed them. There were a couple of young, sleek black geese cavorting on the same pretty puddle, a rainbow of birds singing and dancing on the breeze-including two beautiful, big hawks making lazy circles in the clear blue sky, spring peepers conversing loudly, a big, oozing owls nest high up in a tree, and, ooohhh! all the shimmering shoots poking through the warm mahogany earth. I found sweet, tiny lemon yellow woodland flowers just blooming among the crusty, rustling leaves...and, pale lime buds on every tree and bush. This is such a glorious season! Made all the better by a warm and sunny day.