Finding Light in Dark

I've been listening to Welcome Brigid by Katy Taylor. A collection of songs and prayers about Brigid and Mary.  It has helped me find a calm point during a chaotic time. 

As I write this today, it is Imbolc, the holiday that celebrates the goddess Brigid.  In ancient times, Brigid was important for she represented the return of the sun and warmth to the land.  Sheep begin lambing at this time and people attributed it to Brigit. 

Today, our lifestyles are less dependent on the timing of such things.  With the changing of the climate we are going through, it seems that the traditional time of celebrating Imbolc may need to change.  However, the spirit of the Brigid still has relevance in our modern lives.  We still have a need to honor wisdom, perfection, intelligence, creativity, poetic eloquence, healing, mystical knowledge and many of the other qualities the Brigid embodies.  Taking a moment this time a year to reflect on these qualities is one of the best ways to invite them into our lives.

Here is a poem by Lady Gregory, which was made into a song by Katy Taylor:

Poem to Brigit

It is what Brigit had a mind for
Lasting goodness that was not hidden
It is what Brigit had a mind for

Tending sheep and rising early
Hospitality toward good men
It is she keeps everyone
Who is in straits and in dangers

It is she puts down sicknesses
It is she quiets the voice of the waves
And the anger of the great sea

She is the queen of the south
She is the mother of the flocks
She is the Mary of the Gael

Happy Imbolc to everyone.  I wish that wisdom, healing and creativity finds a way through the dark to light your soul.

DoAn

Poem text: Lady Gregory from A Book of Saints and Wonders, c. 1972, Colin Smythe Ltd, UK—Irish stories, orig. pub. in 1906


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