Author: Ashley

Summer Solstice

~ Ashley ~ 41 Comments

basking holly blue at sunset

Almost sunset,
A butterfly basking on the high hedge --
The longest day.

Are we all sun-seekers, like this butterfly, a Holly Blue, Celastrina argiolus?  It is so good to feel the sun especially at the beginning of the day, but of course on this the longest day of the year and if you are lucky enough, the sun may still be giving warmth and light well into the evening.

The hedgerows that have been left to themselves are full of life, playing their part in the wheel of the year.  Abundance is everywhere in the natural world and that gift is also ours to give to others.

As the wheel of the year turns today we are entering a different period when the darkness begins to grow.  Whilst we celebrate the light of the sun we will also see the increasing energy of the dark cycle, a period for inner growth as the wheel moves towards Lammas at the beginning of August.

I have been slowly making a set of Ogham sticks (see my last post) and I have just completed another two, representing the symbols for oak and holly.  In the Celtic Tree Ogham, oak is the seventh tree representing the letter D and holly is the eighth tree representing the letter T.  The qualities of both trees are significant: oak representing longevity and strength, whilst holly represents stillness and protection (these are just some of the qualities attributed to these trees).

oak & holly summer solstice

Again, my thanks Glennie Kindred for her blessings on my journey:

https://glenniekindred.co.uk/

Beltain 2023 (2)

~ Ashley ~ 29 Comments

4 hawthorn

The second day of May and some of the hawthorn flowers are opening.  With only a gentle breeze on this mornings walk, the scent from the flowers is lovely; the sweet perfume of May.

I have to apologise to everyone as I unwittingly quoted a bad link to Glennie Kindred’s website in my previous post.  Here is the correct link.  I hope you will look her up on her wonderful website:

https://glenniekindred.co.uk

Ashley

Beltain 2023

~ Ashley ~ 44 Comments

1 hawthorn

2 hawthorn

3 hawthorn (2)

New greenery everywhere,
White buds ready to burst into flower --
Hawthorn on May Day.

It’s May Day or if you follow an older ancient tradition, Beltain.  The Hawthorn is just beginning to show a few flowers and my heart rejoices to know the Earth’s energies are stirring.  I’m happy to celebrate this quickening of fertility and growth in my verse!  Today is warmer and with many damp weeks behind us the flowers and trees are sending us a message: the summer is here!

In my attempts to write these 3 line verses I follow the ancient agricultural calendar which is also the Hokku calendar.* 

In the Celtic Tree Ogham, Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) is the sixth tree: Huath, H. and it brings the spirit of wild places, even when growing in a town.  As the seasons change I hope to include more references to the Tree Ogham.**

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Happy Beltain, a time when Earth’s energies are at their most active.  The Earth is alive, not just at the surface but in its depths.

Ashley

[So much of what I am learning about traditional Earth celebrations is down to the writings of Glennie Kindred and I give thanks to her for her love and blessings which I am returning to her through my verse]

https://www.glenniekindred.co.uk

 

* Through David Coomler’s wonderful writings on WordPress I continue to learn about Hokku. https://hokku.wordpress.com/2012/01/18/the-traditional-hokku-calendar-west-and-east/

** https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Ogham

 

Spring Equinox 2023

~ Ashley ~ 50 Comments

blackthorn 1

blackthorn 2

Delicate white blossoms
Cluster around dark needles -
Blackthorn in flower.

It’s the Spring Equinox, when day and night are of equal length.  A celebration of balance, of light and dark, inner and outer, of female and male.

I’ve written about the flowering stems of Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa).  Hidden by the small, dainty white flowers are sharp needle-like thorns on dark branches: light and dark, beauty and armour.  This small native tree has far-reaching roots which produce many suckers creating impenetrable wide thickets, a natural guardian tree from which we learn to respect boundaries.

I give thanks to Mother Earth: in my hands, my heart, and my mind, are all the elements of the Universe.

Ashley

 

The first day of March

~ Ashley ~ 35 Comments

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A dark silhouette;
Beneath the tree's bark,
The sap is rising.

Walking around Moira Demesne on a bitterly cold morning, I couldn’t resist taking a photo of this tree.  Against the grey sky, it’s dark silhouette looked foreboding, like something out of a fairy tale.  Perhaps, one day, I might write a story about it.

Ashley

PS. Yes, I know!  I’m a day late in publishing!  🥴

 

Winter Solstice

~ Ashley ~ 31 Comments 
The dim light of afternoon
Quickly fades;
The shortest day.
just after sunset

It’s the Winter Solstice today, the shortest day, and the longest night of the year.  From this day onwards the daylight begins a slow and initially almost imperceptible lengthening.  Whatever religion or culture one follows, surely this day is worth celebrating?

Up from the earth,
Down from the sky,
The circle of life surrounds us.

With the light increasing, there will be within us an awakening: the dark turning into the light; a notion that the hibernation of winter will end; the old year is dying and a new year is being born.

Stand in the circle,
Dance in the light,
Embrace our place in the cosmos.




Ashley