What does the first day of spring mean for us?
“I’m not interested in any philosophy unless it can help me grow corn.” Sun Bear
Meaning, “it gives me practical help in my life.” This post is about how celebrating the Spring Equinox can do just that.
This year the spring equinox in the Northern Hemisphere is March 20, 1:14 a.m. Eastern Time: a day of equal balance of the hours of light and dark before the sun continues its journey towards longer daylight hours and warming temperatures. The word equinox comes from the latin words meaning “equal night.”
The equinox energy is strong for four days before and after March 20th, giving you time to bask in the opportunities and lessons it brings.
Ancient cultures throughout history have celebrated this time of rebirth of Mother Earth. But what does it mean for us?
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Asking for what you want – here’s how
There is an old saying that, when the student is ready, the teacher appears. It certainly was true for me. I’m frequently asked how I got involved with the Native American spiritual path. The short answer is: “I asked the universe.”
During college, I experimented with the usual recreational drugs and had an epiphany one day on a hillside in the Santa Monica Mountains.
High on mescaline, I saw a mountain breathe and immediately knew two things:
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Have you listened to the wind lately?
A few months ago I did something I’ve never done before. I ate my lunch without simultaneously reading or working; instead I ate on my screened porch and listened to the wind. Then I sat and listened some more.
It was a very strong wind; there were no other sounds to be heard over it. The birds that are usually so vocal during the day were relatively silent, perhaps holding onto tree branches for dear life.
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How did my cats know that?
“Any glimpse into the life of an animal quickens our own and makes it so much the larger and better in every way.” John Muir
We had a lot of thunderstorms in Michigan this year. A lot. It’s particularly memorable to me because each storm, as it gets close, necessitates unplugging all my computer equipment. [Losing a printer in a storm last year was all it took for me to learn that lesson!]
So the drill at my home during a storm is:
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Do you know the “Original Instructions?”
“The thing that is wrong in the world today is that people have forgotten their instructions.” Onondaga Chief Leon Shenandoa in “To Become a Human Being”
And what instructions might those be, you ask? Every indigenous person would know: the instructions passed down from the Creator, the elders, the ancestors, on how to live a life in harmony and balance with the world around them.
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