Spring Gratitude
With the passing of March 20, the Northern Hemisphere melts, quite literally, into the spring season. From what once was frozen and dead, "springs" forth with life. Waters that were frozen run full tilt to the sea. Fields that were black with death, resurrect in shades of green. Skeletal trees and bushes suddenly burgeon with green buds. The spring observances, rites, and rituals around the world all celebrate this return from the brink of darkness and death to new life. The Vernal Equinox, or First Day of Spring, was for our ancient ancestors a time when the gods and goddesses of fertility and rebirth brought the world back to life. Many know of Eostre or Ostara, the goddess of spring and of Brigid, Celtic goddess of Fire, Hearth and Home, but few know, unless you happen to come from these parts of the world, of the Slavic god, Jarylo or Eiar, the goddess of spring from the four seasons' horae of ancient Greece. Regardless, even those who have no connection to re