Spring

Finally it feels as if spring has truly arrived here in Glasgow.  The weather is milder, buds are swollen on the trees and some are even beginning to burst open.  At last daffodils are beginning to flower although crocuses have been out a bit longer. I’ve even seen a little bit of blossom out on the cherry trees in the park near my work.

For me personally, this time of year, centered on the spring equinox, is laden with meaning and significance. It was at spring equinox years ago that I first made a committment to being Pagan. It was at spring equinox the following year that I did my Bardic initiation rite with the Order of Bards Ovates and Druids and in following years I have continued this personal spiritual tradition with other initiation rites. I don’t mean that I have done such things every year by any means but, more often than not ,when I have undergone rituals of this nature they have been in the spring. (I’m not an active OBOD member now but still my roots are with them.)

This time of year remains laden with memories of new beginnings, fresh starts and committments. And this year is no different. My life has been changing over the last few months with some intense emotional upheavals and major personal changes. Change on this scale brings both death and rebirth. As the land about me moves forwards more fully into the spring it is renewal and rebirth that I begin to focus on more and more.

Last weekend I was out in Pollok Park in Glasgow with others in the Glasgow Pagan community celebrating the equinox and as part of that open ritual there was be a baby naming and blessing for the youngest daughter of a couple I had the priviledge of handfasting in 2009. What better way to add to those memories of new beginnings and fresh starts than with the blessing of a new life?  Many blessings for your future little Amelié.

As the spring moves on I hope the seeds of change that were planted in my life in the darkness of this winter will begin to grow and flourish.