Hello, you.
We’re on the other side of mid-March now. Moving ever so steadily towards April and ready to cross over the threshold into the light half of the year in just a few days. On Thursday, as the earth balances on its axis and experiences equal parts day and night, we shift into six months of longer days than nights in the northern hemisphere. We are also dropping into the resting energy of the waning moon after the Worm Lunar Eclipse full moon this past Friday.
And I so need this shift.
March has been a whirlwind for me. Winds have been literally whipping more days than not. The weather has swung back and forth from early spring to winter to spring to winter - day after day. Never settling or staying for long, before shifting again. I never know what jacket to use, or should I carry an umbrella or hat and scarf?
Just like the weather, March has been an emotional, up and down, wild, cozy, chaotic fifteen days for me personally. Through it all, I have desperately tried to find my grounding and tend to my soul. Succeeding, mostly, but also finding myself often wrapped up in the energy of the moment, whether it be wild or calm.
Even though everything feels as if it is in constant motion, and I feel windswept and emotionally exhausted, I actually expect nothing less. This is the month of change. This is exactly when and how the seasons shift. It can be tumultuous and peaceful all at once.
For years I’ve thought that I should be as steady as a tree, rooted deep within the earth, strong and determined. Not moving at all as the storms come and go. Reliable. Secure. Grounded.
I have often felt a bit disappointed with myself as I have seen over and over again, that I am not as strong and steady and grounded as a tree or bush. Storms, wind, rain, disappointments, stress, sadness move through me, leaving me feeling as if I have been uprooted, tossed around, or knocked over.
But, there are three things that I have learned to be true.
Trees and bushes are sometimes uprooted, tossed around, and knocked over. It can happen. And then, the tree or bush needs to be used in a new way - perhaps wood for warming and building. In other words, even when there is a devastating loss, there is purpose to be found. (*of course the storms that literally uproot our lives are not easy. They are life-changing. But, even in the most difficult of them, both the literal storms and the metaphorical ones, there is hope and purpose and meaning to be found - I truly believe that and I seek to live it.)
However, trees most often bend and flow with the wind and rain and storms. They move, without losing their grounding. Deep within, they remain rooted and strong.
In day to day life, when I feel as if I have been knocked over or uprooted, most often I have actually just weathered a storm. I may have lost some leaves and my branches may have been broken, but I am still standing. My roots are still deep within the earth. I am secure, grounded, and anchored.
So, it’s ok for the March winds to blow. I need to trust my roots. And rely on those spiritual rituals that I practice to keep me centered and grounded. I am more steady and anchored than I realize.
As I mentioned earlier, March‘s energy is wild and chaotic, and we honestly need it to be in order to kick-start movement and usher in change after the long, sleepy nights of winter. And right now, during this week in mid-March, we find ourselves right in the height of all of this change and moment. Remember, though, we are grounded, rooted, stable. We can weather anything that comes our way. And, when it feels like too much this week, remember that a literal shift occurs on Thursday. The light wins over the dark and the season of growth and life truly begins. The hope of new life and rebirth is here.
This week’s card is the SICKLE card. At first glance, it seems like a quite haunting and dark message. A sickle is an 10, 000 year old ancient tool used for cutting and harvesting and reaping. What message does this tool have for us as we are just barely beginning to enter the growing season. Why would we possibly want to think about harvesting, cutting, and reaping now? Wouldn’t it be better to stay focused on the hope and light this new season brings?
I was a bit confused when I saw this card. So I sat with it for a moment. And then, as I allowed my soul to stir a bit, I realized that the spiritual message was, as always, perfectly timed.
As the spring equinox and the pagan festival of Ostara approach this Thursday, a new season is reborn. It is a opportunity for us to be reborn and renewed as well. It is the perfect time to create and participate in small, simple rituals for celebrating new life and the arrival of spring.
But, in order to be fully prepared for a new life, a new opportunity, or a new season, there is a bit of releasing that needs to be done.
Spring calls us to reach for our higher selves, to be reborn from the long winter, to embark on a new journey.
The sickle card invites us to cut away all of the old things we no longer need, in order to prepare ourselves ready to receive, understand, and begin again. This week is the perfect time to let go of any- and everything that holds us back, that is stagnant energy, that is choking out what new growth wants to spring forth from us. It is the time to sacrifice, cleanse, and purify ourselves so that we can be made new.
And, the sickle is just the tool to inspire us to focus on clearing out, pruning, letting go, and cutting away all of the unused, unimportant, outdated, old ways in order to make space for whatever wants to grow and be born from within us as we move into spring.
This week, in order to clear out and make space, I am setting an intention to have seven days of detoxing. Each day, I want to find something to let go of, get rid of, cleanse, clear out, reorganize, or release. I feel like this is the perfect way to celebrate the arrival of the season of spring. What could feel better than getting rid old, unnecessary things in order to make fresh, airy, clean space for focusing on what’s really important in order to create the perfect conditions for life and growth?
My seven intentions for cutting away and clearing out this week
Go through my Substack subscriptions and let go of some that I find that I do not read regularly.
Detox completely from social media for 7 days.
Clean out my closet and donate unused clothes.
Detox from all devices/screens either during the last hour before bed or the first hour after waking.
Journal about 7 habits or thoughts that I need to release in order to become my higher self.
Clear out cabinets and pantries. Purge the old. Donate the unused.
Spend 7 minutes each day in silent meditation - clearing out the cobwebs and worries of my mind.
These may be simple tasks; but, for me, each one is an opportunity to release, let go, and make space as I enter a season of new growth. There is so much waiting for me, for us, as the seasons change and the energy around us shifts. I feel like I need to shake off old man winter one more time and create a sense of light, airy space in both my home and my soul.
Gone are the cozy, heavy, dark days of winter. Even if (and when) winter weather arrives again during the spring (and it will, here in Sweden), it feels different. It is time to welcome bright, soft, gentle days filled with light and a sweetness in the air. It is time to begin to rise and come to life.
In many religions, there is a period of preparation before an act of initiation into a new way of being. It is often a period of fasting, prayer, and meditation in order to be ready for something new. A chance to purge and ponder before moving into a deeper, more committed, higher way of being.
For me, that is the perfect way to think of this time that we are in right now, as we shift from one season to the next. A time of great change, both as the earth is reborn and as our lives are renewed as we enter the half of the year that is filled with growth and abundance.
So, this week, let’s boldly and excitedly cut away all of the old things we no longer need. Let’s clear out the stagnant energy of winter, get rid of habits and thoughts that hold us back, clean out the clutter and excess... and make space in our homes, in our souls, and in our minds for the hope and life of spring.
Wishing you a productive, inspiring, and lovely week as we move into the light half of the year together. And remember, whatever spring storms come our way, we are grounded and anchored and ready. The season of hope is here.
xoxo. liz.
March playlist
We're at the threshold of spring. The light half of the year. New energy is now ready to slowly be released. After the long, dark winter, we have come to the soft, gentle, bright season of awakening and rebirth. Something new is waiting to begin.
Sacred Days + Folk Festivals this week
17 March - St. Patrick’s Day
20 March - Spring Equinox/Ostara
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