Paganistan: Notes from the Secret Commonwealth

In Which One Midwest Man-in-Black Confers, Converses & Otherwise Hob-Nobs with his Fellow Hob-Men (& -Women) Concerning the Sundry Ways of the Famed but Ill-Starred Tribe of Witches.

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Hunting for Spring

Our evenday (equinox) eve always begins with a hunt.

In the late winter darkness, we light our candles and go through the house with our baskets, looking for spring. We gather eggs—chocolate ones, mostly—but in the end we still have to descend into the underworld to find Spring, and bring her back ourselves. Here in the north, it's what you have to do.

As a ritual planner, I kicked against this part of the ritual for years. I feared it would trivialize what came after. But in fact gathering our baskets of candy is a delight, and the resonances of the act are ancient, deep, and meaningful.

Since the ritual takes place at my house, in after-days I keep finding spring. It happened this morning. Well into summer, I keep finding spring. This is why we use chocolate eggs for the egg-hunt and keep the real ones for the ritual.

Last year I found the last egg during the Yule cleaning. By then, the chocolate was a little dry and oxidized, but it still tasted sweet. Spring is always sweet, whenever you find it.

Or rather, I thought it was the last one. Hiding eggs before people got here last week, I found the perfect hiding place: there, behind that door. Sure enough, wrapped in its purple foil, was the last of last year's chocolate eggs, its year-long wait finally at an end. Laughing, I added to the trove.

 

There may still be unfound eggs from last year's hunt around, but now the circle has come fully round, time swallowing its own tail, and they join the yet-to-be-found sweetness of this year's spring, waiting to add their delight and laughing surprise to the seasons-to-come.

Northern springs are elusive: snow yesterday, and more predicted today.

But somehow spring always tastes sweet.

Whenever you find find it.

 

 

 

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Poet, scholar and storyteller Steven Posch was raised in the hardwood forests of western Pennsylvania by white-tailed deer. (That's the story, anyway.) He emigrated to Paganistan in 1979 and by sheer dint of personality has become one of Lake Country's foremost men-in-black. He is current keeper of the Minnesota Ooser.

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