spring

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Spell a Day – Feb 7th 2016

Today, Gentle Readers, is a day of promise, of opportunity. Though Winter still has most of us (in the northern hemisphere) in her cold hands, there is an awakening of sorts occurring. Soon the weather will warm and new seeds will go into the ground. Perhaps in some areas this is already happening in preparation for the upcoming spring.

Spring is a time of renewal, of promise. So revisit those promises you made to yourself and keep moving forward into the new year.

Promise of Spring
The promise of Spring
Bringing forth newness of Life
In upcoming days

Plant your seeds with purpose
Nurture your hopes and dreams
For Life has much to show us
Dancing in moon or sun beams

Plant your seeds with care
With an eye towards your goals
Upon the horizon you stare
Watching as the tide rolls

Back and forth it goes
Carrying you ever on
The promise of Spring

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Spell a Day – Feb 3rd 2016

springcleaning

Anyone else feel like this? That’s right Gentle Readers, we are on the downhill to Spring. Grab your sage oil and spearmint oil, mix those up with a little water and spritz your house to dispel the buildup of the long winter months.

I have a further complication to my cleaning efforts this year as my wife and I are expecting our second child the end of April. Going to be a big adjustment from the three of us and two dogs, to adding a newborn into the mix. We have done a lot of prepwork on the nursery. Now it is just the mental preparation. This is really happening. I have been listening to Macklemore and Lewis’s song, Growing up, every day. I think it has become my mantra so to speak. “Who am I, if I’m the person you become, if I’m still growing up.”

I’ve done a lot of soul searching, working on my temper and I think I have made some progress. I think fatherhood is going to settle me down more this time around. I cannot wait to walk out of my work in July and take 8 weeks or more off to enjoy with my newborn and my son.

Until next time Gentle Readers, don’t procrastinate your spring cleaning, or we will ahve to call it summer cleaning.

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Spell a Day – Feb 2nd 2016

Imbolc, Groundhog day, The Feast of St. Brigid. That is right Gentle Readers, we are halfway though winter. While many of us in the US will be waiting for that little rodent to pop out of his home, I will be wishing for a more traditional Irish celebration. St. Brigid, the Matron saint of Ireland, shares her name and her feastday with the Celtic goddess of Inspiration. There are traditions of feasting and gift giving to ring in the coming spring. As the plow is also associated with this time of year, I read about a tradition where children decorate the plow and take it from house to house demanding sweets. The homes that failed to buy off these young people may find fresh furrows in their front lawns. I doubt we would get away with this today unless you really knew the neighbors. Or they wanted to plant a vegetable garden there.

The awakening of spring as it begins to win the war against the cold harshness of winter leading up to the spring equinox (at least for us in the northern hemisphere) is a cause for celebration and renewal. Today is the day to seek the blessings of Brigid for creativity and inspiration in your life and pursuits. Be they of the musical, artistic or literary ilk, she is especially important and this is a momentous time. Dust off those notebooks or tools of your trade and get back to your passions.

It’s also time to start that spring cleaning and purification phase of the year. Grab some sage smudge and push out the winter spirits to make room for spring. Organize that garage for the upcoming yard sale season, or to donate to charity.

A little springtime poetry. Until next time my friends.

Spring’s Awakening
Stretching to the sun
Seeking its life-giving warmth
Spring’s awakening

Pushing back the cold
Of Winter’s frozen embrace
Shaking off the ice

Relief is coming
From the bitter winds and snow
Of Winter’s harsh reign

Eyes turn to the skies
The sun peeking through the clouds
Spring’s Awakening

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Spell a Day – Jan 6th 2016

deathtarotcard.jpg

Death comes for us all they say and Persephone, from Greek Mythology, knows that all too well. When Hades saw her beauty, he had to possess her all for his own. Her mother, distraught, plunged the planet into winter during the time that Persephone was in the underworld. Thankfully Persephone is able to return in the spring so that we can escape the winter of Demeter’s depression. Stories say Zeus gave his brother permission to kidnap Persephone. The story of Persephone is one of transition and change. Sometimes we must face our own “winter” in order to come into the light and warmth of new growth that is the next spring.

The focus of the day is to recognize the necessity for death in our lives. This may not be an actual death of a person/plant/animal, but the death of an ideal we held dear. Perhaps it is the death of a habit we know is no good for us. The point is, that once you recognize that death itself isn’t evil, but necessary to this existence we call life, then you can learn and grow with the experience. Without death, there is no rebirth, either of the planet or of our own spirit.

Gentle readers, accept when it is time for death to take something from your lives. I am certainly not saying to deny the grieving process. I am saying that in your grief, recognize the good left behind, and perhaps the good that is waiting in the wings when your “spring” finally comes back around.

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Poem – Little Bird, Park Bench

Little Bird, Park Bench

Little bird park bench
Enjoying a warm spring day
I bid you Welcome

Glad to see you back
Glad to hear your song
What winter did lack
For spring we all long

Now it’s here to stay
Little bird hopping about
Keep the cold at bay

A song so pure and sweet
Wrapped in the warmer day
To me it is such a treat
Little bird, don’t fly away

Like time you are fleeting
So fill the air with your tweeting
Then off you go to some other place
Where other ears your song can grace

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Why do you taunt us Mother Nature? (Poem and Pictures)

So, after a few nice days. Thursday was full of rain. And this morning I awoke to this outside.

Snow4-10-15B Snow4-10-15A

Why do you taunt us?
Teasing us with thoughts of Spring
Just to take it back

A couple nice days
Then slammed with an all day rain
And followed b SNOW?!?!?!

Please Mother Nature
Enough is really enough
April is now here

Don’t you think it’s time
For sandals and sun and warmth
Camping and swimming

Let’s talk about this
Surely we can compromise
How about sixties?

I hope that you’ll see
It would mean so much to all
If Spring it could be

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Snow Day

Waking up to snow
On this late March Wednesday morn
Makes me wish for Spring

SnowDay2015A

The great thaw had come
There was to be no more snow
But it’s here once more

SnowDay2015B

In cold December
Or even January
We love snowy days

SnowDay2015C

But now it is March
And the snow is getting old
Please Mother Nature

Bring warmer weather
Campfires, cookouts, swimming holes
It’s all that we want