domenica 30 aprile 2017

Beltane, Vappu, Walpurgis Night : six weeks

Today is a rather special day as most part of europe are celebrating 'something'. It is kinda sad in my opinion, how much the ancient traditions have been litterally wiped away and most of us are totally unaware of what we're actually doing or celebrating, but hopefully this is the time of a paradigm shift and the ancient knowledge will be known again without fears or prejudices, giving us the chance to track a new path made of connection and not of distruction. Today is Beltane, an ancient Celtic festival which marked the beginning of the 'light half of the year', when the darkness of winter months is now just a memory, the Pleiades descend to the lowest point in the sky where they're no longer visible and the earth and animals are ready for re-birth, for a new cycle to start, half way between the Equinox and the Solstice. It has ever be so true here like this year, as on the 29th of april we have been hit by a snow storm, yesterday it has been cold and rainy all day just to have a sunset on fire ( a true bonfire set up in the sky by the Highiest Powers ) and today it's warm and the sun is shining. Metaphorical and metaphysical I'd say. Here in Finland today it is called Vappu, and the name brings  back to the Walpurgis Night of german tradition, where the night between the 30th of april and the first of may was considered the ''Witches Night''. So it is indeed a special day. And it's the day in which I keep track of Father Sun and the gift of light.

Sunrise has been at 5:14
Sunset will be at 21:16
Lenght of the day 16h 1min
( + 3h 45min of daylight in six weeks, + 31 min since last monday )
 
Here you can check on the Equinox and Here last week.
And now a couple of pictures from yesterday's evening sky's bonfire ...



sabato 29 aprile 2017

April Snowstorm

I have been quite sick all the week long (hence the total silence here), now it seems I'm getting back to my normal self even if I'm still a bit under the weather. Also my feelings have been quite upset lately so it's no wonder that my body reacted with an illness. I'm trying to figure a way out from this, and of course I look solace, inspiration and peace of mind in our Mother Earth, watching the Highiest Spirit express their power through her. Yesterday it has been amazing, I really felt like bowing to the nature as we have been hit by a snow storm that lasted several hours. As usually I should have understood that something was coming from the odd behaviour of the wild birds dwelling in my yard and sharing their daily living with me, but as often happens to us humans, I was too blind to see the obvious. Looking outside it is hardly possible to think we're about to celebrate Beltane.











domenica 23 aprile 2017

Five weeks, back to life

When observing the nature and trying to tune in with Mama Earth, every new week means extraordinary things happening and filling your days with beauty and awe. Even if this season is much more colder than any other in the last (at least) five years - I have been living here that long- many signs of the nature waking up and enjoying the warmer sun and the longer ( and longer and longer ! ) days keeps showing up. Trees are still bare, even if the buds are swollen and seems just on the verge of bursting in the greenest leaves you can think of, but the first brave flowers are blossoming in the fields and in the forest.
But let's track the light right now ...

Sunrise has been at 5:30
Sunset will be at 21:00
Lenght of the day 15h 30min
( + 3h 14 min of daylight in five weeks, + 39 min since last monday )
 
To see the situation of the past weeks you can check here, here, here, here, here. And now please, follow me in a walk in the forest ...









venerdì 21 aprile 2017

Smoking Mushroom

A few days ago in our daily walk in the forest we came across this mesmerizing mushroom. It looks like a rotten potato with a small mouth-like hole on top. Unfortunately beside a couple of kind of edible mushrooms, I don't know anything about these creatures ( I'll provide to start educating myself as soon as I find a good handbook ), so I have no clue if it's poisonous, edible or what, but non the less it is amazing. We spent quite some time with my two youngest poking gently the mushroom with a long stick (just in case it is not healthy ) just to see a cloud of smoke coming out from its mouth. My almost five years old have been laughing and giggling so much at the sight while me and my doughter were taking pictures over pictures.






mercoledì 19 aprile 2017

Textures

Since I have started taking pictures as a form of art, around ten years ago, I have been always attracted to the different textures that I could find in the nature. During my wanderings I often get lost watching the ground unfolding in front of me and under my feet, so basically I either walk with my nose up to the sky or my eyes glued to the earth. Not the most social being probably ... but there's so much to see, to dive into, to savour and tresure and be grateful for.








lunedì 17 aprile 2017

The Morrigan


Yesterday morning three of my crows friends were lined on my porch. I think of them as The Three Morrigna from the Norse mythology. Even if they might have seen as signs of doom, I'm very fond of them and I'm sure they're here to lead me in a path of wisdom and rebirth. 
Of course I love Omnia song Morrigan ...

... Over hills and over meadows
see the crow fly, feel her shadow
Over woods and over mountains
searching for a war

Her wings embrace each strife and battle
where swords they clash and chariots rattle
seeking out the one whose time
has come to take the blade

Morrigan ancient crone of war
I see your face, I'll cry no more
Morrigan ancient crone of war
come lift me on your wings

Morrigan ancient crone of war
I hear your voice, I'll breathe no more
Morrigan ancient crone of war
come set my spirit free....

domenica 16 aprile 2017

Four Weeks, Back to life

Already four weeks since the equinox and so many changes in light. This year the spring is showing itself extremely cold ( temperatures in the night drop to -6 and during the day hardly go over +2 ) and even if the sun is shining most of the days most of day, it's enough to have some wind and running clouds to have a fine and frozen snow to start falling. It's an impressive phenomenon indeed, many times there is still sun but we have real snowstorms that lasts from few minutes to few hours but that hardly leaves any sign after they stop, since the ground is too warm for the snow to keep. All this is making the nature more slow than usual, trees are still totally bare and in the garden we had the first crocuses  blooming, but most of them show the damages of the frost. Anyway, here is the light situation today :

Sunrise has been at 5:51
Sunset will be at 20:42
Lenght of the day 14h 51 min
( + 2h 35 min of daylight more in four weeks, + 39 min since last monday )
To see the situation of the past weeks you can check
 here
here, here, here .

 The grass is still dry

 The frost has damaged most of them

Love the close-ups
 
 Hoping for more flowers soon.

sabato 15 aprile 2017

Rebirth

What's Easter if not the chance for a rebirth. Set new purposes, set a new life ahead. The nature rises from the rotten leaves and mud to flowers and fruits. The Christ showed us the possibility for all of us, belonging to sacred realm of the nature, to do the same. So either if you celebrate Easter as A Christian, or this period of the year in any other way, my best wishes for the new path unfolding in front of you.


giovedì 13 aprile 2017

Sawdust

Longer and warmer spring days call for a long time spent outdoors, which means not so many deeds done, or maybe not so much time to record them in pictures as I usually work at my different projects in the teenie weenie space of time between this and that, but I have to admit that even in the hustle and bustle of spring I can still have much done and it usually translates at the moment in huge piles of sawdust ( which my husband highly dislikes, but that's it ... eheheh ). Did I already mention that now we have a stand-drill and I'm utterly thrilled of this new ''toy'' ? With one of my sons we always jokingly argue over who is to use it as we both love the new piece of machinery ....


martedì 11 aprile 2017

Unpredictable North

Yesterday morning I woke up to a beautiful blue sky and amazing golden sun, the temperature, even in the wee hours of the morning was way over 0C (+4C). I wrote on my nature journal 'I feel this gonna be the first real day of spring'. I was kinda wrong I think ...





... During the night we got snow ...

All hail to the power of nature.

domenica 9 aprile 2017

Three weeks, back to life

Almost one month since the equinox and the differences are already amazing. There is so much light and the temperatures are now almost constantly over or around 0C. Most of the migrating birds have come back and we have spotted the first butterflies, bees and ants. We still have sunsets and darkness in the night, but that shall pass and we'll get to a point in which night will be just an unknown concept here in the north. In a wicked way I almost miss now the introspection and 'homey feeling' that darker months give, these season I'm constantly out with my youngest two and I have very little time left for my projects, but I'm well aware that I just need to get used to these new rythms and 'light months life' and that when this will be over, well I will miss a lot what at the moment makes me almost uncomfortable. But let's give a look at the light situation.
 To see all the changes you can go and check here and here and here

 
Sunrise has been at 6:12
Sunset will be at 20:24
Lenght of the day 14h 12 min
 
( + 1h 56 min of daylight more in three weeks, + 39 min since last monday )  
 
 
This was the sunset a few days ago, beautifully pink.
 

mercoledì 5 aprile 2017

A forest on a rock

A few tens of metres away from home there's a green patch with a big rock. Since we moved here my children named it the 'big stone' and they love to go there. The youngest inherited their passion and the big stone is the place he is always asking to go. So the other day while he was climbing I decided to give a closer look at the moss that covers most part of the stone in this period of the year. Well, moss is one of the most fascinating things in nature, so many different kind, different colors, different look, just like in a full sized forest, with its variety of trees and plants.