Hey, it’s spring everyone – at least for most of us north of the equator. Winter is done and the time has come to go outside, plant gardens, visit friends and shed the winter clothes. There is one other thing that springs to mind during this time of year – Spring Cleaning.
When I was a kid I remember having to help my grandmother spring clean the house. Which - In my opinion back then was a drag – I hated it. Spring cleaning in my household meant taking every piece of furniture outside to be cleaned and polished; washing the walls before putting a fresh coat of paint on; Scrubbing the linoleum floors; taking down the curtains to be washed in the bathtub using a scrub board, hanging them outside to dry, ironing and re-hanging them after the windows had been washed. The two of us did this every year, usually during my spring break. I’m sure you feel my pain – I still feel it!!!
Granny used to say: "this is the time of year to clean out the old and get ready for what is to come. How can the good lord bring you anything new if you haven’t cleaned out the old?” I didn’t quite understand what she was saying back then – nor did I care. All I could think about was this was really hard work. I was missing sleep (I couldn’t go to bed until a project was done) and my spring break wasn’t any fun. Oh! I will never forget helping her move the refrigerator, which weighed a ton back in the day, to clean behind it. I learned how to use my weight properly to move heavy objects. After the house was done, we started on the yard.
So, why am I telling you this story? For one thing – my grandmother was correct. We do have to clean out the old to make room for something new. If we don’t – we create a cluttered house. Another reason is to let you know that doing so isn’t easy but it is good for you, in the long run. When I say "house” I am referring to the mind. If we don’t go through our mind and clean out old debris (old thought patterns), we won’t be open to new ways of thinking - which leads to an elevation in our consciousness – the actual purpose of life.
Springtime is a very good time to do a cleaning of the mind. It is the time of year when darkness and light are equal – the Spring Equinox which is the time of death and resurrection. Cleaning out what has died or no longer works for us - prepares our minds to be resurrected with new beliefs that match who we have become.
Doing a spring cleaning of the mind isn’t easy but it is worth it. Because the days and nights are equal, there is the struggle between the darkness and the light. Remember, however that the light is gaining during this time of year– the days are getting longer which insures a greater chance of success if we are willing to do the work.
Both Light and Dark are important to our evolution. We cannot see clearly without both. Spending the last six month’s either moving towards darkness or in it gave us time for introspection. Hopefully, we used at least a few the long winter nights contemplating our lives – reviewing the harvest we received from the thought seeds planted last spring. Now it is time to move forward with renewed vigor into the spring cycle of planting new thoughts based on what we learned during the winter.
One of the ways to do this is to call upon the Goddess Persephone for help and guidance. Persephone is the Goddess of spring and is an expert in both the darkness and the light. For those of you who don’t know who she is, I’ll give you a brief biography.
Persephone is the daughter of the Mother of Harvests (Greek) Demeter and Zeus – the king of the gods. She was doted on as a child and loved very much by both mother and father. When she became of age, the god of the underworld, Hades kidnapped her taking her to the underworld. Her mother was very upset, to say the least causing famine and all sorts of calamities on the earth. Zeus struck a deal with Hades to get Persephone back to her mother, sending Hermes (messenger god) to collect her from the underworld.
As Persephone was leaving, Hades gives her a Pomegranate as a gift. Persephone is aware of the significance of this gift. If she eats any of it – she won’t be completely free of Hades. During her time in the underworld, Persephone fell in love with Hades – thus she is torn between her love for her mother and the love of Hades.
Anyway, Persephone eats seven seeds of the pomegranate. Thus, a compromise had to be made. In the spring she is returned to her mother and returns to Hades in winter.
The Goddess Persephone is the goddess of new beginnings and awakening because of her return to her mother in the spring and also to Goddess of the Soul because of her winter sojourn to Hades. Being an expert of both light and dark makes her the perfect go to person for new beginnings.
Call on her asking for assistance with new beginnings and see what happens.
See you next month
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