Hello, here is my mid-week nudge from Nature. It’s a bit of a longer read today, my ponderings about our connection to the seasons, how it has been celebrated in history and what we could do today.
One of the ways I’m being more intentional in connecting with nature is by being more aware of the ways the seasons have been noted and celebrated as festivals. I know this may turn some people off, but stay with me. It does all ultimately come back to nature. I would like to suggest that we don’t have to view festivals such as Imbolc, which is today, as pagan, or against Christianity or indeed in any way religious if you don’t want to. The more I’ve read about the celebrations that form the wheel of the year, the more I see them as an opportunity for us to reconnect with nature and the seasons. Other than the weather, I know some city dwellers are almost entirely unaware of the changing seasons, even though there are still plenty of signs in our concrete world.
These festivals developed in ancient times as a way of marking the changing seasons and making sense of what was happening in the world before scientific advances explained them and the Christianity calendar took over. Many pre-Christian traditions and celebrations were subsumed by Christianity because people were celebrating anyway. As communities adopted Christianity, they continued using the same rituals, think of the bringing in of evergreens at Christmas and the use of light and fire. I am predominantly talking about Western/Christian countries here, though I know other cultures also have wonderful festivals and traditions associated with the seasons.
And so onto today. There are a host of pagan and Christian festivals around the 31st Jan-2nd Feb. Imbolc, the Spring Pagan Festival is celebrated on the 1st Feb in honour of the Goddess Brigid, which leads to St Brigid’s Day in Irish Christianity, (also the 1st Feb), celebrating St Brigid who may or may not have been a real 1st century Irish Nun. Candlemas (2nd Feb) in the Christian calendar, marks the end of the Christmas season when traditionally the holly and ivy were removed from houses to mark the beginning of Spring. Imagine that, Christmas continuing all the way through the dark short days rather than ending on Twelfth night. I’ve also just learnt that Groundhog day in North America has an association with Candlemas and of course, is when a groundhog decides if Spring is coming or not.
Whatever you call these days and whatever the origin, these festivals are ultimately celebrating the beginning of spring. It is halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox which are markers of day length and the position of the planet. The festivals are associated with the start of the lambing season (is there a more joyful spring sight than gambolling lambs?) and farmers preparing to plant their fields and restart the farming year. They focus on what many were doing at that point in the year.
For those of us without lambs to birth or fields to sow, or with no religious beliefs, it is still a time of anticipation. All talk seems to be about longer daylight, warmer weather and sightings of spring bulbs. On my social media timelines this morning there have been many posts celebrating getting through January, we need that hope that the long dark winter days are nearly over.
So, how does this help us connect with nature? I believe that just as we mark the year with religious festivals or secular holidays like birthdays, holding celebrations to notice nature make an occasion of the moment. When we celebrate, we create memories around that date remembering what is happening in nature - often what the weather is doing. In the UK, we associate Christmas with snow, even though it rarely happens now. My childhood September birthday parties were nearly always outside wearing summer clothing, so in my world, summer lasts until then!
Traditional ways of celebrating the early Spring festivals include the making of St Brigid crosses from rushes, the lighting of fires and visiting Holy wells and water. Religious rituals at this time often centre around purification and cleansing, is this where spring cleaning comes from? Modern interpretations may be lighting candles or visiting a special body of water with friends and family. It’s a time of spring cleaning, I currently have the back door open, letting the fresh air in. We might grow spring bulbs and be planning which seeds we are going to grow this year. Or as I am doing, searching everywhere for green shoots peeking out, for buds on trees ready to burst and noting each new bird song I hear (more on this to come in my end-of-week letter). Another lovely suggestion I read about, linked to the ritual of purification and spring cleaning, would be to do a litter pick or beach clean, a very concrete way of helping nature. St Brigid is also the patron saint of craft, so I’ll take my sketchbook out later and do some green sketching.
So, however you want to describe it - happy Spring!
Do leave a comment below if you are marking this point in any way, I’d love to hear how others are celebrating the coming of Spring.
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Happy St Bridget day!