When she goes about her kitchen duties, chopping, carving, mixing, whisking, she moves with the grace and precision of a ballet dancer, her fingers plying the food with the dexterity of a croupier. — the late Craig Claiborne, irreplaceable New York Times food critic As we feel the upsurge of Spring’s arrival, we may feel … Read more
Welcome Spring! Awake, thou wintry earth — Fling off thy sadness! Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth Your ancient gladness! — Thomas Blackburn Today is the Vernal Equinox in the northern hemisphere, and Autumn Equinox in lands below the equator. We are all experiencing the same phenomenon: the daylight and the darkness are in balance. The … Read more
Today is not only the Spring Equinox, but it is the beginning of the astrological new year as the Sun moves into the sign of Aries! As the first sign in the zodiac, fiery Aries is the first one to get things started, initiating projects and leading others. The Ram is adventurous, ambitious, impulsive, enthusiastic … Read more
Craving for Spring (excerpt) – D.H.Lawrence Ah come, come quickly, spring! Come and lift us towards our culmination, we myriads; we who have never flowered, like patient cactuses. Come and lift us to our end, to blossom, bring us to our summer we who are winter-weary in the winter of the world. Come making the … Read more
Man shapes himself through decisions that shape his environment. — René Dubos (1901-1982. Environmentalist, microbiologist and creator of the slogan, “Think Globally, Act Locally.”) As the Winter season begins to loosen its grip, we can prepare for Springtime energy by considering the impact of our home environment on our own energetic field. Our home is … Read more
While waiting for the Muse (or your suggestions) to inspire my next theme (if any!), I am offering some encore posts from past years. This was from January, 2007, but much of it still feels appropriate for now, as we transition from Winter to the first stirrings of Spring. In this time of the element … Read more
This Moon was known by our ancestors and indigenous people as the Snow Moon and the Hunger Moon, as it comes in this most lean and wintry time of year. This is the last Full Moon before the Solar New Year, which arrives at the Spring Equinox. Many cultures and traditions celebrate around the time … Read more
This encore post, is part two, from a series I wrote back in February, 2006. Knowest thou What solemn shores of crocus-coloured light, Reared by the sunset in its realm of change, Will mock the dream-lost isles that sirens ward? –Clark Ashton Smith Many of us are seeing the first welcome signs of Spring and … Read more
Another encore post, this time, part one of two that I wrote back in February, 2006. Behold, this crocus is a withering flame… — Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Barren Spring, 1870 The signs of Spring are becoming increasingly insistent and unmistakable. In my garden, purple and yellow crocuses are opening in the noon sun, before slipping … Read more
Fire of dawn-light in Her hair, Fire flows like milk from Her hands. Fire of bright promise in Her springing step, Fire of the flame in Her eyes. A blessing on Your hearthfire, On Your gift of words, On the brightness of Your sacred body, A blessing on Your flame. — Cait Johnson Blessings for … Read more