Let There Be Light
Since moving to Canada, I’ve come to love this time of year. After the depths of winter, with shorter days and super cold temps, late January and early February brings the first visceral sense that light is returning, as days become visibly longer.
Our little house seems to open up, as more light floods the windows for a little longer each day. The sun catcher crystals scatter their rainbows further into our space, and gentle smiles light our faces. Yes, we nod, spring will come again. We moderns are not the first to note this returning of the light, with this six-week period heading into the March equinox long celebrated as a time of emergence.
In Sydney, where I lived until just a few years ago, this time of year also bought change – the subtle shift from long hot days of summer, to the return of normal schedules with kids back to school and classes back in session. As days became noticeably shorter, the inner urge to make the most of the heat and light spurred me and my friends to make the most of what beach days there were left before chilly autumn suggested we plan social get togethers inside.
Sundial
The Imbolc celebration is central to this mid-season festival (in the northern hemisphere at least), as early February marks the half way point between the previous solstice and the upcoming equinox (a cross quarter festival). Down Under, this correlates seasonally to the festival of Lammas, celebrating the bounty of harvest and kick starting the period of the year in which ancestors are remembered.
Wherever you are, this week marks a turning point, from the December solstice towards the March equinox. Seasonal shifts are there for the noticing, as the world outside invites you to subtly shift direction and focus.
2012′s first cross quarter festival is marked by the influence of Mars retrograde, a rather contradictory combination. Mars symbolises energy and momentum, while the retrograde suggests this is now moving in reverse. On the one hand this suggests now is a good time to review, revise and redo. Whatever you’ve been doing can be improved by revisiting. It also suggests a slower pace to help you catch up or complete outstanding projects. (And today, I’ve finally replaced the light bulb in my office light!!!)
And while the Sun’s light is shifting, growing in some parts of the world yet diminishing in others, the Moon’s light is entering its phase of emergence, reappearing in the night sky as a thin crescent, that will, over the course of the week, blossom to half full. Night time sky viewing is pretty right now, as Venus and Jupiter straddle the Moon. You’ll spot Venus in the western sky not long after sunset, with the Moon and Jupiter overhead.
