In the Belly of Winter

Since 2023, Imbolc, or St. Brigid’s Day, has been celebrated on the first Monday in February as a national holiday in Ireland. One of the four ancient Celtic seasonal holidays (the others being Beltane on May 1, Lughnasadh on August 1, and Samhain on November 1), Imbolc is thought optimistically to mark the first day of spring. Were the holiday celebrated in Maine, we would probably hew closer to simply acknowledging the fact that it is the approximate midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. Yes, dear reader, it is true: Another winter is halfway over. When you look out at your garden, do you see the remnants of last year’s seed-heads providing late sustenance for the animals leaving tracks in the snow? Let’s hope so! Our January  membership meeting speaker Ron Desrosiers gave us all permission to leave the leaves, the seed-heads, the stalks, and the berries as forage. Do less, and your garden will love you more. Above all, stay off the wet soil, lest it compact under your footsteps. Some historians believe that the word “Imbolc” comes from an ancient Gaellic word that meant “in the belly,” referring to the beginning of lambing season. We generally think that if we’re “in the belly” of something, we’re in so deep, there’s nowhere to go but–like the winter aconite, the crocus, and the daffodil–up.