Happy Imbolg!
This is a bit late (Imbolg is usually celebrated on February 2nd), but I just got around to having my own personal Imbolg ritual tonight. Originally I was going to celebrate with my friends, but the snow put a halt to that. Yes, Imbolg is a celebration of the beginning of spring. It's always a bummer when your "Welcome Spring!" ritual gets snowed out.
Why do we celebrate the beginning of spring in February? Because spring begins long before we actually get to see it. Later, when "real" spring is here we'll see the flowers and the new plants, but they don't just appear one day from out of nowhere. Now, while we're still freezing our toes off, the seeds are getting ready to grow, the trees are waking up and the days are getting just a bit longer. So now is the time to plan for the spring to come, to think about what's stirring in our hearts and minds and to plan out how we will nurture those seedlings in the coming year. So, while safely peering out at the nearly two feet of snow from inside my nice, warm apartment, I lit candles and meditated on my plans for the coming months and drummed and sang a bit and gave thanks for the many blessings in my life.
I am less than gifted when it comes to actually growing things, so I tend to keep my Imbolg ritual symbolic. But lots of people do take this time to actually plan out their real-world gardens, so here's a poem for those of you wishing for the snow to melt so you can get outside and start digging:
He Knows No Winter
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil,
For, stormy days, when he is free from toil,
He plans his summer crops, selects his seeds
From bright-paged catalogues for garden needs.
When looking out upon frost-silvered fields,
He visualizes autumn's golden yields;
He sees in snow and sleet and icy rain
Precious moisture for his early grain;
He hears spring-heralds in the storm's ' turmoil
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil.
- Sudie Stuart Hager
Why do we celebrate the beginning of spring in February? Because spring begins long before we actually get to see it. Later, when "real" spring is here we'll see the flowers and the new plants, but they don't just appear one day from out of nowhere. Now, while we're still freezing our toes off, the seeds are getting ready to grow, the trees are waking up and the days are getting just a bit longer. So now is the time to plan for the spring to come, to think about what's stirring in our hearts and minds and to plan out how we will nurture those seedlings in the coming year. So, while safely peering out at the nearly two feet of snow from inside my nice, warm apartment, I lit candles and meditated on my plans for the coming months and drummed and sang a bit and gave thanks for the many blessings in my life.
I am less than gifted when it comes to actually growing things, so I tend to keep my Imbolg ritual symbolic. But lots of people do take this time to actually plan out their real-world gardens, so here's a poem for those of you wishing for the snow to melt so you can get outside and start digging:
He Knows No Winter
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil,
For, stormy days, when he is free from toil,
He plans his summer crops, selects his seeds
From bright-paged catalogues for garden needs.
When looking out upon frost-silvered fields,
He visualizes autumn's golden yields;
He sees in snow and sleet and icy rain
Precious moisture for his early grain;
He hears spring-heralds in the storm's ' turmoil
He knows no winter, he who loves the soil.
- Sudie Stuart Hager