Distaff Day

The distaff was the medieval symbol of “women’s work”. A woman who was making yarn might wrap the wool fibers around a distaff to keep it ready and out of the way while using a drop spindle to spin the wool into thread.

A student using a drop spindle to make yarn.

Spinning and weaving were never-ending chores. Most women and girls would spin thread while also cooking, caring for children, or minding the sheep- but during the Christmas season women took a break from spinning. January 7th was the traditional day for women to start back to work, and so was called Distaff Day.

Spinning is such a powerful symbol that the Spirit as Goddess is often portrayed as a spinner: Athena, Isis, and Grandmother Spider Woman are all spinners and weavers. Amaterasu spins and weaves sunbeams. The Three Fates control destiny by spinning the thread of life. Frigga works the heavenly spindle to weave the clouds; she has the ability to feel and see clearly.

So, I celebrate three things today:

• My love of the fiber arts.
• My start back to work (especially housework- cleaning and caring for my home, and making a sanctuary for my family).
• And how I create my own destiny with thought and deed.

Agenda today and this week: 
1. Journal:
What are the threads of my life now and how well do they weave together?
Where can I simplify the pattern? Where can I add richness?

2. Spindle Meditation: 

I’m not much of a spinner, but I always pull out my spindle on Distaff Day, and spin a little wonky yarn. As I work with it I ask the Spirit to give me the ability to slow down, be present, and see clearly. 

3. Start a Fiber Project:
On Distaff Day, I usually start a new sewing or crochet  project, something small to carry with me. I like to have some handwork to do at meetings or when I'm waiting for a class to start. 

Today I started stitching the words What a joy it is to be alive.

This is my equivalent to spinning while watching the sheep, and my way to honor "women's work" through the ages. 

4. Housework:
Every year on Distaff Day I kick off a month of deep cleaning. My house has certain mold-related issues that are best done before we get any deeper into winter.  Also, winter is a good time for a few big indoor cleaning jobs.

I take it one room at a time, and this week I will start in the kitchen. I hope to:

• Clean the oven: Remove the racks and soak them in the sink. Turn on the oven's self-cleaning mode (which takes 2 to 6 hours). Let the oven cool for at least 2 hours then sweep out the ashes. Wipe the oven clean with a wet rag. 
Clean the racks.

• Shine the sink: Fill the sink with hot water, add bleach, and let it sit for 1 hour. Rinse well. Scrub with cleanser and rinse again. Clean around the rim of the sink and the faucets with a brush.
• Scrub the mold from the windows with detergent and warm water, then use a solution of ¼-cup bleach in 1-quart water. Wait 20 minutes and repeat. Wait another 20 minutes. Apply Borax solution and do not rinse, to help prevent mold from growing again.

5. Kitchen Blessing: 
The Orthodox Church has a tradition of blessing homes within a few weeks after Epiphany. The family prepares by cleaning the house, and then a priest comes to sprinkle holy water and pray for each family member, living and dead.

So what is a blessing? The Church recognizes a blessing as a statement or prayer that invokes God’s favor and power, and prepares one to receive grace, or in the case of a house blessing, prepares the space and those within it. 

My own understanding is that the cleaning itself is a blessing, and that sitting still in a newly cleaned room is a good way to remember that we are each blessed, always and forever. 

My custom is to bless each room this month, first by cleaning it, and then by remembering. At the end of this week I will find a quiet morning to light candles, sit quietly with my morning coffee and savor the blessing of a clean kitchen. 

I may also say a prayer to the Spirit of the hearth and home. This prayer is an adaptation of the Greek Orthodox House Blessing:

Peace be to this house and to all who live here. 

May the Spirit of Love inspire each of us 
to develop our talents, 

and contribute to the benefit 
of our family and our community.

Make our house a haven for us all, 

and a place of warmth and caring 
for all our friends who visit us.

Enlighten us with the brilliance of grace, 

so that, as we go into the world, 
we might clearly see our way.

Amen