What a joy to walk through a field of newborn lambs watching them bouncing in all directions, making us squeal with laughter, with our young friends Gabriel & Melissa imitating their bleating and jumps. On another sunny Spring day their Mother and I paid a visit to Rollright stone circle where we made a simple ritual to honour and protect the circle. We walked around the outside of the stone circle, sprinkling pollen and grains, while speaking our heartfelt prayers, and drummed and rattled to reinforce this. Then we dowsed for our best healing spots and exchanged healings. It felt so good to give and receive healing in this Sacred Space.
Spring time feels like the perfect time to launch my new website. Everywhere is bursting into bloom, with new growth, nesting birds, the hum of bees and images of fertility and birth all around -today is May Day and the air is pregnant with possibilities!
It has to be said that our small pond has too much signs of growth with about a million tadpoles that went ferrel and ate three of our goldfish. So we made a 6am mission taking 2 buckets full of them down to the canal. The pond had also become overgrown with plants and weeds, and it looks much better now that I have reduced them, allowing more movement and space for the fish, whilst still keeping some leafy habitat for the newts and frogs – balance in all things!
It also feels good to have my hands in the earth again, planting seeds, bulbs and herbs, and delighting as the various flowers appear – our huge Ceonothus is in full bloom!
In my Feng Shui consultations at the moment, there is a strong theme of starting afresh. Moving house is a great opportunity to bring change into your lifestyle and experience of your home. But if you have no plans to move, then you can still bring about a fresh start with a good clutter-clear, spring clean and Space Clearing, let alone redecorating. I think this is one of the reasons I have always enjoyed rearranging the furniture at home from time to time, throughout my life, just to make the place and myself feel refreshed and different. Also by changing the way that you interact with the space, you can help to bring about changes eg sitting in a different chair, or using the front door rather than the back one, or transforming a rarely used guest/spare room into a play room, creativity room, meditation space, reading room or tantric love temple! Today is May Day, traditionally on this day people would burn their winter bedding and floor coverings ready to be replaced with new ones.
Beltane or May Day is approximately half-way between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice. Beltane marked the beginning of summer, and is about celebrating life, after the dreary hardships of winter. In days gone by, Beltane was seen as a magical ‘in between time' and people would place Rowan branches outside their doors to protect them from the awakening mischievous fairies, and in Ireland they buried leftover food as an offering to them. May is a time when flowers bloom, trees are green and life has again returned from the barren landscape of winter, to the hope of bountiful harvests and the lighthearted bliss of summer.
Beltane celebrations may include rolling in morning dew, maypole dancing, leaping over sacred fires to ensure fertility, circling the fire three times for good luck, athletic tournaments, music, drinking, feasting, fruity spicy bread, children gathering flowers, flower wreaths and garlands, ribbons and streamers, passionate sex and sensuality, fertility symbols, vibrant colours – particularly green, and child-like exuberance and joy. Have fun!
