Spirit Matters: May – Flower Moon

Dear Friends,

If you were a flower, what would you be? The familiar rhododendron in dazzling pink, red, lavender, gold, or apricot? A rose, lovely, fragrant, yet spiky to touch? A sweet pea, tender and innocent, as aromatic as summer herself? A shy violet, content to hide in grasses and shadows? Or – on the wild side – purple lupine, cheery English daisy, or treasured camas lily…

In the Pacific Northwest, May’s full Moon is known by the Kalapuya as “Camas Blooming Time.” Camas blue flowers cover meadows throughout Oregon, eastern Washington and northern Idaho. Camas has been a key food source in Northwest Native diets for centuries. When the blooms fade and set seed in June and July, native peoples would harvest the nutrient rich roots. They kept larger bulbs and returned smaller roots to the soil to ensure a good harvest the following year. (from the Farmer’s Almanac by Daniel Higgins)

The Flower Moon peaks with the first full moon of May, this year May 1. Everywhere we look, May abounds with flowers, and several special days are traditional for gathering and offering them as gifts.

Did you ever leave a posy of flowers on your neighbor’s doorstep on May Day? I recall, as a child, sneaking up and hanging a folded paper cone of flowers on a doorknob or setting a basket carefully on a porch, ringing the doorbell, and then running away before getting caught – such excitement! Like many old-fashioned customs, May Day baskets are now observed less frequently, but remain a kind gesture in hard times.

May Day, though associated with protest as well as a call for help, has deep Celtic roots and is often celebrated with crowns of blossoms. Have you ever leapt over a fire? Sadly, I have not, though I applauded those who did at a festival I attended as a young mother at Chinook (now Whidbey Institute). And, yes, there was a Maypole festooned with colorful ribbons to weave around the pole, a symbol of fertility. The pagan Celts were unashamed of, shall we say, sensuous festivity.

 

Beltane, the beginning of summer

The Celts named the first day of May ‘Beltane’, which is one of four fire festivals throughout the year along with Imbolc, Lammas, and Samhain. The Celts saw Beltane as the beginning of summer and brought life and fertility back to the world. Bel was a Celtic deity, or god, and the name Beltane means the ‘fire of Bel’. Fire was central to the celebrations on the belief that it had protective powers. It was thought that rituals of walking around, or even leaping over bonfires would bring good fortune, fertility and happiness to people and their livestock. People created household fires, re-lit from the bonfires and houses were decorated with flowers. Naturally, the rituals were accompanied by much feasting and merriment! The Origins of May Day and Beltane

 

Mother’s Day is deeply interwoven with bouquets and strolls through gardens such as Azalea Way at the Washington Park Arboretum, usually in full spectacular bloom. This is one way I love to celebrate Mother’s Day, in addition to being with family. Something about those blossoms’ unabashed beauty fills my heart and senses with joy. And, of course, I cherish the flowers given to me by my husband and adult children. After the celebration is past, I savor the radiant bouquets that bless our dining room table, until they eventually transform and are composted.

And, no need to depend on someone else to give you flowers – give some to yourself, honoring your Mother within, whether of children, creative projects, cats, or a garden…

When my mother was in her prime, she loved growing sweet peas and roses. When I was an adult, she often gave me gifts of flowers. The stems were carefully wrapped in wet paper towels and rubber-banded in a plastic bag, to keep the blossoms fresh. Her Greek father had been a gardener and she had quite the green thumb. In the fullness of my age, I appreciate even more the love she was sharing through this effort.

Finally, at the end of the month, Memorial Day, honoring those who have died in military service…This solemn occasion is often commemorated with wreaths of flowers placed on graves. While much of our nation celebrates this three day weekend as the beginning of summer with barbecues, boating, and beach picnics, we have the opportunity to pause and reflect, recalling those who have given their lives.

Recent wars have often been riddled with mixed motives, but WWI and WWII were vast campaigns during which millions of people died to protect their countries and homes. Memorial Day was a very difficult day for my father who lost a close friend while landing on Iwo Jima. So many soldiers were traumatized by similar shocking losses.

No matter which war, Memorial Day is a time of respect, remembering veterans who have given their lives, as well as those who carry on with painful memories… The red poppy became the floral symbol for this sacrifice, and there has long been a custom of wearing a poppy to honor those who died. I don’t see this often anymore but whenever I see red poppies blooming at the Picardo P-Patch, I think of their significance.

As I reflect on flowers spiritually, I note their whole-hearted blossoming, the gift of their beauty and pollen, fruit and seed, even as their delicate petals fall. This can be experienced as sad and morbid, or a great teaching to bloom fully, then let go when our time is done, trusting the fruit of our lives to continue nourishing others. I’m still unreconciled to death, honestly. But nature is a patient creative teacher and in the words of Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8: To every season….

 

Haiku:
Crab apple fragrance
fills the sky, blossoms like moon
glowing in forest
– Marcia Rutan

 

May your Flower Moon season be beautiful, your heart lifted…. As always, I invite and appreciate your responses and comments.

Love,

Marcia Rutan

 

Music Suggestions

Bring Flowers of the Rarest (Queen of the May) – James Kilbane (Irish Christian, honoring Mary)

Mother of All Things – Lisa Thiel (Pagan and Celtic roots)

Turn, Turn, Turn – The Byrds (Folk rock, 1965, Ecclesiastes-based)

 

 

 

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