Today is Imbolc. It is a celebration dating back to the Celts where we mark the midpoint between the Winter Solstice (Yule) and the Spring Equinox (Ostara) and a symbol of rebirth. The wheel of the year is turning and the cycle is starting anew.
It’s hard to think that the first wakening of spring can come this early in the year; especially here in the North where we typically don’t see our last frost until just before Memorial Day. We have surpassed the darkest days of winter, and now the light is slowly beginning to return; it’s not dark at 4:15 pm anymore!!. Even here, there are birds beginning to sing, the buds on the trees are showing the first signs of plumpness, and a stray bits of green are pushing through the earth here and there (even if it will ultimately be re-covered with snow)!
For many, we turn inward after the end of the holidays and hunker down for a less eventful January. We go about our days as typical and end them curled in the comfort of a blanket or in front of the fire to hibernate for the darkness of winter. Now with the beginning of February, it is time to start to awaken from our winters nap, stretch and begin to think of the new beginnings that come with impending spring.
I’d say one of the very first things we see in our area is the temperatures being such as it will soon be time to tap the maple trees. All we need are freezing nights and above freezing daytime temperatures, and the trees will begin to provide their bounty. I don’t know about where you are, but here the stores are displaying all their seeds and the seed catalogs are inundating the mail. We don’t start our seeds indoors until around Easter time, but these first signs of spring prompt us to begin the planning process for a successful season.
If gardening is not your thing, this may be a time of introspection and planning, setting to do lists, or making goals for the more active months of the year. It is also the perfect time to begin to Spring clean your space. I think my goal there is to get my refrigerator better organized for grab and go and pre-prepped items. It will require me to be better at a prep day on Sundays, something that I’ve long procrastinated against! Ugh! Well I guess it takes 66 days to create a habit, so maybe by the time we start to harvest this year’s bounty, I’ll be better prepared! 😂
How do you plan to celebrate the first inklings of spring? Do you have special rituals or habits that you want to tackle? Feel free to share, I’m always up for new ideas!