Dana, The Goddess of Herbaceous Delight
The Crystal Bowl
Tomorrow marks the first day of spring. The 2009 vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere occurs Friday, March 20, at 4:44 am PDT; 11:44 UT. It is one of the four grand solar celebrations of the year. For the moment, Mother Earth is equally balanced in the dark and the light, soon to roll over into longer lengths of day. The year, a toddler at Candlemas in February, is now a young girl. Full of life. Full of promise. Full of love and joy. Fresh faced and beaming. Sampling what life has to offer, the clouds of sorrow and the brightness of the sun pass over her as quickly as they do the spring sky.
It is a time to plant the vegetables that will become the stores of fall harvest. Fertile seeds hold the prospect of new plants. New life. The ancient Italian custom of planting the gardens of Adonis on the first day of spring, persists in Sicily. After the planted seeds sprout, the women wrap the stalks with red ribbons and place them on graves on Good Friday. A scarlet reminder that life has cheated the Grim Reaper of his prey.
This is a time to celebrate the retreat of the dark part of the year. The light is coming. The Earth grows strong and gives new, green life under the warm, gentle persuasion of the sun. This time of planting symbolizes all of the attributes we wish to manifest during the coming year--love, grace, patience, understanding, wisdom, peace, abundance. All this and more, I see in my crystal bowl.
