Today is Beltane, one of the eight earth holidays—a cross-quarter day, between Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice.

Early pagans sowed their seeds at this time and did rituals blessing their fields. While we might find some of those ceremonies bawdy, what could be a more magical way to attune yourself to the fecundity of the earth than to be fertile and multiply right along with the crops?

It is the lush season, the flagrant blooming of flowering trees and incessant buzzing of bees doing their part to perpetuate life. Part of me wants to loll about beneath a fragrant plum tree, while another part wants to join in the mood of the season and up my own productivity. Why not do both? Balance—what a concept!

I’m seeing one shape more and more lately, wanting to be noticed, wanting to be meditated upon. So soft as they emerge, fuzzy ferns regreen the woods, unfurling in sacred spirals. It’s time for me to also unwind from my seasonal withdrawal from the world. These ancient beings feather the landscape with lacy fronds—always knowing it is nearly May, it is warm enough to reach out and up.

spiral shell and two fossilized spirals

I love found spirals—a nautilus shell, a nebula unwinding, a honeysuckle tendril coiling—deep-rooted archetypal images of infinity. Sometimes they are not benign, as hurricanes whirl along in spirals, re-ordering the universe. It’s no secret that there is sacred geometry afoot here, just another reminder that we’re all connected in ways we still can’t fathom.

CONTEMPLATIONS

• Do you feel an inner pressure, something wound up within you, ready to emerge?
• What seeds will you sow today?
• Can you spot other spirals in nature? What do they symbolize for you?
• How are reaching outside yourself this season?

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Enter another spiral here.