Each minute sweeter than before"
"Come forth, and bring with you a heart
that watches and receives."
~ William Wordsworth ~
Major English Romantic Poet
The first of March! It may not be the first mild day of March, but whether the weather be lion or lamb the first of March is here, a day often associated with the New Year and new beginnings. As Wordsworth says, we have before us a day of "blessing," an "hour of feeling." I like the way that he feels free to discount January and February as not quite living up to his expectations:
Our living calendar:
We from to-day, my Friend, will date
The opening of the year.
For Wordsworth, it is the long - awaited month of March that captures "the spirit of the season" and sets the true course for the remainder of the year. He doesn't want his sister, or anyone else, to miss out on his sense of urgency and certainty that "One moment now may give us more / Than years of toiling reason":
Which they shall long obey:
We for the year to come may take
Our temper from to-day.
"The Tables Turned: An Evening Scene on the Same Subject"
by Wordsworth
and
"The Air That I Breathe,"
by The Hollies
See my new blog post:
"A Heart That Watches and Receives"
on
The Fortnightly Kitti Carriker
A fortnightly [every 14th & 28th]
literary blog of connection & coincidence;
custom & ceremony
Previous March First Posts
2010: Kiss Me & Kiss Today & Dear March
2011: My Vegetable Love
2012: Love However Brief
2013: Beyond Ideas
Thanks George Sfedu
Additional Martisor folklore from George:
Romanians have a beautiful ancient tradition on the first day of March : Martisor (The Amulet). Its name is a diminutive from the name of Martie - the Romanian word for March.
Every year the festive day of March 1 brings back to us renewed hopes, confidence, faith in good fortune and a prosperous life. It is life, spring and the shining sun which win the battle against chilly weather, overcast skies and the nasty, cold days of the “Babele” (old women - the first 9 days in March).
This triumph of rebirth and regeneration cannot be better embodied but in the Martisor which is offered to loved ones in early spring. The white and red thread of this amulet which parents customarily tie around their children's wrist, young men offer to young women, and young women exchange among themselves is believed to bring good luck and health.
"The Martisor is offered early morning on the first day of March; it is worn for 9-12 days, sometimes until the first tree blooms, when it is hung on a flowering branch to bring good luck to its bearer."
Additional Martisor Blog Posts
2014: The First [Mild] Day of March
2015: Wind from a Leaf
2016: Reading the Obituaries
2017: Piano Bar
2018: The Sweetheart Tree
2019: Flora or Fish?
2020: The Once and Future Guenever
2021: Felix Anno Novo
2022: March Begins: The Heart's Desire
2023: Happy Martisor Day!
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