This isn’t an Imbolc post. Not because I’d be over a week late for those who are strict about holiday celebrations (no shade, I just didn’t intend to do a specific holiday post this year), but because Imbolc is the start of a whole slew of witchy business after months of rest.
Samhain to Yule is a time of reflection and shadow work for me, and around Yule and into the cold of January is a time to rest. But Imbolc is the first waking. The sun is out longer every day. The air is warmer (although, disturbingly, it’s a little too warm this week for mid-February). It’s time to start waking up those witchy muscles and working them a bit as we prepare for spring. Of course, in the spirit of accommodation for low-energy cycles and chronic illness or chemo/radiation affected magic, I do have a few options to kick start your spring awakening that can be done anytime, whenever you feel good enough to do it.
- If it’s warm enough outside on a sunny day, open a couple of windows in your room(s) so you get a bit of a cross breeze. Light some cleansing incense you like (frankincense and dragon’s blood is my favorite).
- Alternately, of course you can sain (that’d be the non-appropriative version of smudging) the room with a bundle of dried herbs. Rosemary or juniper is particularly nice for cleansing.
- If you feel particularly oomph-y in the energy department and haven’t done a full cleansing of your house in while, this is a good time to kick out any sickness/darkness/depression/backed up ick feelings from being stuck in winter blues for months. As always, if you’re cleansing a whole house I tend to go room by room, clockwise, top to bottom in the house. In each room, use whatever chant or words work best for you to claim the space and revoke/reject anything that isn’t positive intent for you and your family.
- If you have NO energy, open your curtains and let the sunlight in: sometimes it’s the smallest step that gets you going.
- This is also when I start working on planning my gardening and landscaping projects. I know, I know, planting is MONTHS away in Minnesota, but ordering seed catalogs and thinking about flowers and herbs and that new spiral garden I want to build helps me look forward to green things and warmer days, and that helps on the grey days.
My new office is almost done. I can’t unpack books yet (my door is ordered but not here yet, so my baseboard trim isn’t in, so I can’t put my bookshelves back ARGH), but I can work from here now and I can restart my indoor plants. I lost an African Violet during construction, but this little trooper made it through the dark days and is happy on her new windowsill.
It’s time for us all to wake up and thrive, however we can.
No Pithy Phrase 