Spring
“The early bird gets the worm.
The early worm … gets eaten.”
~ Norman Ralph Augustine
Spring - 2010
March brings the Full Worm Moon. This is when all the robins alight on lawns for the feast.
The honking V formations of geese have been back for some time. By the second week of March, the trills of Sandhill Cranes are heard on high as they journey north. The songs of Red Winged Blackbirds have become common. Urgently chirping Robins are noisily staking out nesting places in the pines.
Let the nesting begin!
First chance I get, as soon as the air has the slightest hint of warmth, the windows and doors are opened and the cinnamon brooms are put to work. I sweep out the old air and sweep in the new. This prevents sickness and uplifts the energy in a home.
March brings us the amusing idea of Daylight Savings Time. This year, I have been slow to emerge from Winter’s hibernation, but in years past, I felt the need to press on. When that happens, I simply move my clocks forward the first week of March. Believe it or not, this does not cause any confusion. In fact, it gives me a tremendous advantage.
Time is an illusion. That is a fact. If it were not so, Tarot Cards and the I-Ching would not work. Ah, but they do.
Non-the-less, seasons will change. Nature will respond and react. The sun and moon will rise and set according to the plan of the physical plain. But man-constructed time is easily manipulated.
So, if I set my clocks one hour forward two weeks before everyone else. It simply means that I have a one hour daylight advantage over everyone else – for two weeks. This can really give you a jump start on the rest of the world, if that is what you wish to have.
The Spring Equinox found me in the woods.
It seemed too sparse without foliage. The encroaching houses of subdivisions seem to crowd too closely. There was little privacy to be had as I walked with the coopers hawk following me from tree to tree. A bunny froze, and nervously eyeballed me from the edge of a path. I could relate. Like the creatures of the woods, I felt too exposed.
The trillium, one of my favorite plants, was still hiding beneath the earth. Newly fallen oaks - slayed by powerful winds, lay dying on the ground in defeat. Time and nature will be slow pallbearers carrying these giants into the earth.
I was startled out of my melancholy mood by a crow calling out from a distance. Hmmmm…
There is something about a crow that gives me pause. It’s not that they bring bad news or bear bad tidings. It’s more that they curiously show up and comand attention. A group of crows is mildly amuseing. They are smart, territorial birds that bore easily and seek amusement. They simply band together to play games, and create a show of size and numbers. They love to play pranks on large birds of prey. A band of crows will wake a sleeping owl, and chase it from tree to tree in the middle of the day. I've often wondered if the owls ever think about pay back during the night.
The end of march, and the beginning of April brought time to the forefront. The peas needed planting. The gardens needed preparation. The cold frame needed attention. Off I go. Time to get moving!
“APRIL is the cruellest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.”
~T.S. Eliot –The Wasteland
April 4 brought the fragrant, sweet scent of Hyacinths through the kitchen windows. Now, the Cherry buds are swelling to the brink of bursting forth. The daffodils are in full swing, bobbing their colorful heads at each other. The crocuses are beginning to fade.
Spring is on! Aries rules now, and that bright planet hanging low in the sky is probably Mars. But I haven't time to verify it.
May 1 takes us back to the cemetery with bouquets of azaleas and tulips from my gardens. This is my annual Beltane-Like custom.
This year, I discovered that a ground hog had eaten all the spring bulbs that I planted in the cemetery last November. His tunnels were large and extensive. My husband and I followed his visits to many graves throughout the cemetery. It was quite the amusing May Day adventure.
I hope that nobody gets angry about his visits with their loved ones. I’m quite sure that the occupants of graves don’t mind in the least that the ground hog feasted with them. To me, it symbolizes Spring’s life from death. It is the natural order of things. I hope nobody goes all Bill Murray on the “Golfer Kong”.
The end of May brought heavy rains followed by intense heat. The rhododendrons, azaleas and lilacs have faded. The Irises, Peas, Clematis and Wisteria are in full bloom. The Peony buds will soon become burdensome, heavy blossoms that stems strain to hold. The Roses are studded with buds, and the Apple Tree boughs hold the promise of a great harvest this fall.
Memorial Day Weekend brings the big garden rush to get things into the ground. All chance of frost is gone, and the high heat is coming. If growing food, this is the time to get roots into the ground. The moon was full on Thursday, so I rushed to get my above ground crops into the dirt. Ideally, they should go in when the moon is waxing, but this year, the weather simply would not cooperate. So, I will put the above ground crops in now, and put the root crops in last - under the last quarter moon.
But, all of the gardens are planned and primed to grow. The ground is tilled. The soils are amended to the needs of the crops. The compost and manure are in. There is nothing left but to plant, and my spirit is calling me back to the woods. June 21 brings the Summer Solstice, and the illusion of linear time in the physical plain marches forward.
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