Spring
I was only away for the weekend, but while I was gone the Beautiful grandmother tree in my yard burst forth in new life, canopying the sky with bright Spring green. After a week of intense rains, bouts of hail and some dramatic thunder and lightening storms, I awakened to the new season making its presence known this morning. The tree stood strong through it all, drinking in the abundant waterfall with her deep roots and stark Winter outstretched braches. Imagine my surprise when I pulled the window shades open, sleep still drifting round my head, to behold rays of warm Sunshine filtering through the new growth of fertile green leaves, while they swayed in an unexpected dance with the light breeze. Delight flashed across my face. ‘Yay!’ I joyfully said aloud, welcoming the arrival of Spring and its regenerative grace.
I find it so very hopeful and inspiring to bear witness to Mother Earth’s ability to renew herself year after year. Gardeners are anxiously awaiting Spring planting and the process of beginning a new cycle, while buds appear and fresh vegetation shoots up from the ground. What an Amazing process, right? Autumn’s fallen leaves nourish Mother Earth and provide seeds so that new life can begin. Through the long dark cold and very wet Winter months, the barren land stands still in its dormancy. Then Winter Solstice returns us to the light half of the year again, and with the warmer days life begins to stir beneath the surface, ready to burst forth, reemerging blossomings beginning the miraculous cycle of life again.
When I joyfully adventured outdoors to welcome Spring, the sunshiny day, and renewed life, I was promptly the receiver of a couple of catcalls. I laughed, then smiled at the clear awakening of the new season! It really was Spring! All around me was bustling, birds vociferously chirped their pleasure, squirrels busied themselves in the trees, and my neighbours actively enJoyed the Beautiful day and chance to be outdoors again. Like Mother Earth, we too are shifting into a new season, where seed planting and springing forth into action will be rewarded come harvest time. Spring is a favourite season of mine, as it allows for not only the witnessing of Beautiful blossomings in nature around us, but also a regenerative start in our lives, as well.
Love and Spring Blessings,
Antonia
Season’s Change
The stark tree branches reach skyward through thick white clouds floating down from mountaintops, hints of sunlight dancing with the shadows below during a brief break in the rains. I, like many others of you here in the northern hemisphere, have been getting quite spring feverly, and chose to indulge in a study break in search of indications of spring in my surrounding neighbourhoood. While Winter’s face can be quite Beautiful in its unadorned simplicity, there comes a time when stirrings for Sunshiny days and renewed life insist upon one’s attentions. Buds burst forth, breathing hope and revitalization into our beings.
A walk along the local wetlands is a Wonderful treat as I never know which birds may grace me with their presence. The tide had rolled out towards sea revealing exposed earth upon which the Sunlight sparkled and glistened.
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Early Spring flowers tend to be yellow, a cheerful symbol of the Sun’s return. I am always particularly Grateful to see daffodils, one of the most popular floral signs that Spring shall soon arrive. These hearty yet delicate bulbs return year after year with little work, and have a variety of names within their family, including daffodils, buttercups, narcissus and even jonquils. I appreciate sharing in the special Beauty they provide as they help herald in the new season.
Love and Blessings,
~Antonia
Winter Solstice with a Full Lunar Eclipse
Look! the massy trunks
Are cased in the pure crystal; each light spray,
Nodding and tinkling in the breath of heaven,
Is studded with its trembling water-drops,
That glimmer with an amethystine light.
Winter lies at our doorstep, the shortest day and longest night of the year known as Winter Solstice fast approaches, and will be combining this year with the rare gem of a full lunar eclipse. The Winter Solstice marks the time when the Earth tilts farthest from the Sun, a return to light as days increase in length, an auspicious time which has been celebrated and honoured for many centuries. It’s incredibly exciting that this year we can watch as the full Moon passes through the Earth’s shadow, which will give it a red glow before it fully eclipses late evening December 20-21. This is the first full lunar eclipse in nearly three years, so you won’t want to miss it as the Moon begins its umbral journey at 10:32 p.m. PST, which is when it will become a cool shade of bright red before fading to black a little past midnight on the Pacific coast. The beginning of the eclipse will be visible just before sunrise in Northern Europe, the end of it will be visible rising at sunset for Japan and northeastern Asia. You’ll need no special equipment to witness this spectacular event, so I highly recommend bundling up and stepping outside to enJoy it.
In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.
While the show above occurs, Mother Earth rests beneath us while doing the inner work needed to ensure a prosperous Springtime. We can also use this time of year to complete behind the scenes prep work, letting go, rebalancing relations, and trusting that through the challenges we will be met with successes ahead. Breathe, surrender, and allow your inner light to shine, as your heart guides you towards that which you wish to fulfill in the new year. The fallow darkness is a gift for inner exploration time, as our own shadows are brought to light so that we too can expand and grow. This time of year has always brought with it the sense of hope for the Wonderful renewal soon to occur, and is a time for Joyous celebration with those we Love. As the Sun makes its way back to Earth, we partake in festivities and fun, giving thanks for the Blessings on their way. Wishing you a Beautiful Solstice, Dear Readers, may the coming of the light allow you to shine brightly.
Love and Blessings,
Antonia
Autumnal Equinox and Fall Begins
When summer gathers up her robes of glory,
And, like a dream, glides away.
The Autumnal Equinox is upon us, and so begins the darker half of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, as the Sun’s strength diminishes bringing with it shorter days and longer nights. As the temperatures cool, the sunshiny days lie behind us, and Lovely thoughts of flannel sheets, soft sweaters and cozy boots console me as the energy around draws down and inward, mirroring Mother Earth herself, as she prepares for a well earned rest. At 11:09 p.m. EST the Fall Equinox, also known as Harvest and Mabon arrives, which is a time for turning inward to assess and give thanks, a time of Gratitude for both the Blessings brought forth in the year, and also for the tests we’ve passed through. Since many of us probably moved through some challenging times as well, it is time to take a breath and honour the season’s change by compassionately turning inward.
The winds dance across mountain tops, sweeping down to share secrets with the valley floor. The vibrant greens make way for the bright golds, oranges and reds, as the last grains are harvested prior to first frost’s bite. Having served their purpose, plants return to Earth again, forces of death completing the endless cycle. Scattered on cool breezes, the seeds are sent forth for the next year. And, we too can allow for the falling away of that which no longer serves us, sowing new seeds to answer the heart’s calling.
In the garden, Autumn is, indeed the crowning glory of the year, bringing us the fruition of months of thought and care and toil.
Reflecting inward, we can look at what the seasons past have brought into our lives, honouring the gifts brought forth. Hopefully this season’s change finds you with much for which to give thanks, Dear Reader. Perhaps there were challenges along the path this year, as well. Following our passions sometimes requires extra work we wouldn’t always wish for ourselves, don’t you find? But, because we took hold and chose to move through it, we shall find this Fall Harvest all the much sweeter. We give thanks for our community, for their support also assists our successes. We have gatherings to look forward to, as we Joyously come together in upcoming Holidays. Of course we also give thanks to those who have come before us, the treasured ancestors who paved the way for us. Happy Autumn! For what do you give thanks this Fall Season?
Love and Autumnal Blessings,
~Antonia
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