Ostara - Vernal Equinox

I started this blog with the intention of posting something every day, no matter how trivial. It is an exercise in discipline...unfortunately, I've never been one for discipline. 

In any case, the first full day of Spring has arrived, and what a lovely morning it is. This, after six weeks of strangely spring-like weather through February and the first part of March, and then it turned cold and snowed for two days. Gotta love it. 

Still, this being Colorado, the snow flurries yesterday died off mid-morning and even the frost had melted from the streets and cars by 10 am. Soon enough the sun was out and it became a beautiful sunny day, if a bit colder than it's been. Nevertheless it was a fine day and inspired Round One of Spring Cleaning. Clearing out the dust of winter, changing out snow-themed decorations for flowers and greens, is one of my favorite tasks. I know... kind of sad that I enjoy cleaning as much as I do. I think it's less the activity than the sense of accomplishment when it's done. 

Also, a clean house. I'm not as OCD as my mother was, but I definitely have a touch of it. 

http://www.justshortofcrazy.com/natural-dyed-easter-eggs/

At the end of the day I decided to color some eggs. I have always loved this tradition and a few years ago, I found some great ideas for naturally colored eggs, rather than those Paas kits we used when I was growing up. Turns out all you need is a cup of a coloring agent and a tablespoon of vinegar. I took some of my ideas from the gal at left (see caption for link to page), and also made up a great pink color with the last of the red curry I brought back from Tanzania a decade ago. I'm still waiting for the blueberry to get a little deeper. 

Trick if you use this method: do not do as the author did in her illustrative pictures, and put your eggs in mason jars. I tried that with two of my batches (blueberry and coffee) and they became mottled on one side. I'm not positive it was the crowding in the mason jar that did it, but I've done this before, always in bowls, and it never happened before. So I will draw the connection there. Use bowls. 

Eggs are of course a prime sign of fertility, birth, beginnings. Coloring them is an ancient tradition. I'm not sure where it originated, but it certainly does evoke the new color and growth that marks this season.  The Equinox marks the day when the hours of daylight and night are equal, the world in balance. From here the days become longer, stretching into the glorious long days that are summer. It's a time to celebrate the awakening of the Earth. Already trees are in bud (or bloom!), flowers are poking their heads above ground, grass is greening, and I even found a few new dandelions in my yard last week. 

Note: leave your dandelions for a while. They are among the first new blooms for bees. The greens are edible (if a bit bitter), and you can make oil and a soothing salve from the flowers. I made one last year that was a bit too greasy for my liking, and will look for a different recipe this year. I'll share it if I find a good one!

It's a funny thing that all my life, I have loved Autumn the best of all the seasons, but in recent years it's Spring that has brought me the most joy. Perhaps it's because Winter can be so long and cold and difficult to get around that the warming of the land is more inspiring than it was in my youth. Perhaps it's because the closer I get to death myself, the more I appreciate the notion of returning life over impending death. 

In any case, Spring is here, and it is beautiful, and it needs to be celebrated as a time of rebirth and new beginnings. In the Wiccan tradition this holiday is called Ostara, and there will be posted in coming days a thousand memes about Ishtar being the original Easter and how that Christian holiday is really a pagan holiday, but I don't want to get into all that. Besides, the Christian holiday is pretty clearly aligned with the Jewish feast of Passover, which is when Jesus' crucifixion is said to have happened. The theme of 'rebirth' is pretty clear in both cases. 

There are a number of ways to mark the day. I have been a little under the weather in recent days, so I slept too late to go watch the sunrise at the park of standing stones, but I'll go down for the sunrise tonight. Decorating the house with flowers and fresh greens is always a positive way to mark the change. If you have a yard, now is the time to clear out dead leaves and branches and think about what you'll do with the garden this year. 

If you want to do a little magic, a simple rite would be to take a white egg and write your wishes for the coming year on it, in the color that reflects your desire. Bury it in the garden, plant a flower above it, and watch it grow.