As some of you know I live high in the Rocky Mountains on a country ranch with my husband. It’s a beautiful place and I can’t imagine myself anywhere else, although I think I’m a city girl at heart. The high mountain winters are long here sometimes lasting 13 months out of the year! For that reason today’s Summer Solstice is cause for celebration at our home.
I love the legends and lore associated with this time of year. As quoted from “The Longest Day: Traditions for the Summer Solstice By Virginia Johnson “June has long been associated with marriages, and much midsummer lore has arisen from the greening time. The act of silently gathering nine kinds of flowers and placing them under a pillow is supposed to reveal in dreams the identity of the person to be wed. The honeymoon to follow was originally a time when the newly-weds would share foods prepared with honey so that their lives together might be sweet.”
I hope to spend some time in the gardens perhaps collecting some magical flowers and herbs. Ms. Johnson writes, “Herbs and flowers harvested on Midsummer Day were believed to have magical qualities. Specially gathered fern seed was believed to make people invisible and guide them to buried treasure, and wreaths and garlands of flowers were created to bring health to households and ward off evil.”
In the past my husband and I have hosted great feasts, in the Nordic tradition, to celebrate Midsummer Day. This year we’ll celebrate with a romantic evening, cooking dinner on the grill and enjoying every last drop of warm sunlight until darkness falls and stars twinkle in the sky.
Whatever you do today, please take time to celebrate. Celebrate summer, celebrate your health and celebrate all that is right in your world.
Best wishes,
Kaye
No comments:
Post a Comment