St. Patrick's Day is an Irish holiday that falls on March 17 each year. In Ireland it's celebrated with parades, community feasts, singing, dancing, and church services, all in honor of St. Patrick, an English man who lived in about 400 A.D. Pat’s whole name was Magnus Sucatus Patricus. When he was 16, Irish raiders carried him off from England to Ireland to work as a slave. He escaped six years later, traveled and studied for many years, and became a Christian missionary. He returned to Ireland, and grew famous for all the miracles he performed and for converting many Irish people to Christianity.This is also the fourth week of Lent. My theme this year for Lent is Down-to-Earth Simple Living: I've been easing back to the basics of living my life: Eating, playing, home and garden, family and art. At Lent I allow myself to be slow, simple, and thoughtful. I spend time each day in focused study and prayer. This Lent, I plan to continue to explore my relationship to the natural world, the cycles of the seasons, and down-to-earth living, with the simplest of actions.
And tonight is the First Quarter Moon; we are one-quarter of the way through the moon cycle. The moon is waxing - getting larger - until it's full again. Now is the time to remain flexible, use my obstacles as fuel for growth, and show full effort for priorities.
Agenda Today:
1. Prayer of St. Patrick
2. Journal queries
3. Simple steps plan
4. Make a full effort plan
5. Wear the green
6. Plant peas and onions
7. Enjoy hot Irish coffee
6. Plant peas and onions
7. Enjoy hot Irish coffee
The Celts brought a new perspective to Christianity, quite different than the Romans; the four major themes of Celtic spirituality are:
- Pilgrimage as a means of discovering your own path to God
- Monasticism and life in community
- Art and symbolism
- The idea that God is present everywhere
Christ, shield me this day:
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every person who thinks of me,
Christ in the eye that sees me,
Christ in the ear that hears me.
It's very powerful to ask to be surrounded and protected by a world and people filled with the love of God, and feel the Spirit of Love within and all around me.
2. Journal queries:
Today, at the first quarter moon, I prepare to give full effort to my priorities; I remember that for each opportunity in life there is a challenge. My theme this month is strength and resilience, which requires flexibility. The challenge I face is rigidity. I can't be the strong, adaptable person I want to be if I am stubborn and uncompromising. I need to practice equanimity, and the willingness to adjust.
Which of my priorities am I having the most trouble acting on this month?
What potential challenges and obstacles do I face this week and month (things I don’t enjoy, don’t know how to do, or feel blocked on)? How can I best meet these challenges?What do I need (tools, information, allies) in order to best practice the habits of resilience (calmness, clarity, flexibility, optimism, and a sense of purpose)?
3.
One of my intentions for Lent this year is to dive into various web sites that offer information on simple living themes. So far I've looked at simplifying my schedule, simplifying my stuff, simple steps towards physical resilience, simple eating, and simple energy-boosting habits.Simple steps plan:
With two weeks left of Lent, I've decides to research habits that lead to mental flexibility, the ability to size up and adapt to an unexpected or difficult situation and take action, while keeping your goals and values in mind. I am a routine-loving, schedule-addicted old person, and learning ways to approach life with a more open attitude will help with clarity, calmness, energy, creativity, and better relationships. Flexibility is particularly useful when nothing is predictable, like time with young children can be!
The habits I will practice this week are:
- Question my thoughts and words. Become more aware of what I'm saying and thinking, and instead of being attached, try a different perspective.
- Counsel myself. Use my self-talk to provide reassurance and guidance when I'm feeling overwhelmed. Ask myself questions that will clarify my priorities and feelings in the situation.
This week I want to welcome the new season with full effort. My plan:
- Sunday: Go to the garden store.
- Monday: Sew a rainbow with my grandson.
- Tuesday: Plant flowers in planter.
- Wednesday: Decorate with birds and nests.
- Thursday: Dye eggs for Nowruz
- Friday: Paint chickadees and eggs
- Saturday: Plant onions and flower seeds
5. Wear the green:
In Ireland, it’s an old custom to wear a shamrock or a green ribbon pinned to your clothes on St. Patrick’s Day.
The three-leafed shamrock plant (Trifolium repens, or white clover) is a national symbol of Ireland. St. Patrick may have used it to teach the Irish about the Christian trinity (the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost). Before that, though, the leaves stood for love, courage and wit; it was also a symbol of the Goddess Brigid as virgin, mother and crone.
A couple year's ago I made a shamrock pin, following the directions from the Saturday Evening Post. The only thing I added was a safety pin, so I can wear it on my jacket. Directions are here.
7. Enjoy hot Irish coffee:
Ingredients:
1- Warm a mug with hot water and then empty it. Pour piping hot coffee into warmed glass until it is about 3/4 full.
2- Add the brown sugar and stir until completely dissolved. (The sugar is essential for floating the unwhipped cream on top.) Blend in the Irish whiskey.
In Ireland, it’s an old custom to wear a shamrock or a green ribbon pinned to your clothes on St. Patrick’s Day. The three-leafed shamrock plant (Trifolium repens, or white clover) is a national symbol of Ireland. St. Patrick may have used it to teach the Irish about the Christian trinity (the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost). Before that, though, the leaves stood for love, courage and wit; it was also a symbol of the Goddess Brigid as virgin, mother and crone.
A couple year's ago I made a shamrock pin, following the directions from the Saturday Evening Post. The only thing I added was a safety pin, so I can wear it on my jacket. Directions are here.
6. Plant peas and onions:
In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is the traditional day to plant peas and potatoes (or so some people say). I'm planting peas and onions instead.
Some permaculture tips for onions:
- Culture: Onions are photoperiodic plants — they regulate their stages of growth by day length; they will make top growth until the critical light duration is reached, then begin to bulb. The amount of growth and development prior to bulbing will determine the bulb size. (For my valley I choose long to intermediate-day varieties.)
- Bed preparation: Onions love good drainage, and detest mulch (they rot easily in the ground). I prepare my bed by loosening the soil with a fork, then applying complete organic fertilizer (1/4-1/2 cup per 5 row feet). The fertilizer should end up being 1-2 inches below where the transplant will sit, so next I add compost in raised rows.
- Planting: I plant transplants rather than sets or seeds, because I've had the best success with these. One tip: Be sure to keep the transplants damp before planting so they don't get stressed out, or your onions might bolt later. Cut the plants to 3-inches tall, and plant about 8-inches apart into the raised compost.
- Companion planting: Plant onions with carrots, beets, cabbage, strawberries, and lettuce; they will ward off harmful insects due to their pungent scent. But be sure to not plant them with nitrogen-fixing plants like peas! Onions have antibacterial properties that are great for our health but will kill off the nitrogen-fixing bacteria that legumes produce.
- Watering: Onions have to be watered regularly, especially closer to harvest, as this dictates the bulb size. Water from the side, not the top, and don't let water sit in puddles - excess water can lead to leaf rot, and water entering the bulb from the centre can cause the onion to rot within.
- Harvesting: When you see the onion tops start to look yellow and fall over, they are nearly done growing; push down the remaining tops and allow the bulbs to rest in the ground for an additional 10-14 days to reach full maturation. After no more than 14 days, harvest your onions on a sunny day and let them sit in the sun until the roots are brittle and dry in order to stop any root growth.
- Curing: Once dry, bring the onions in and spread them out in a warm, well-ventilated space to cure for 2-3 weeks. Be sure to turn your onions to promote full, even drying.
- Storing: To store onions keep them in a well-ventilated area and never place them in plastic.
Ingredients:
- 1 c. freshly brewed strong black coffee
- 1 jigger (1-1/2 oz.) of Irish whiskey
- 1 tsp. to 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
- heavy cream (not whipped)
1- Warm a mug with hot water and then empty it. Pour piping hot coffee into warmed glass until it is about 3/4 full.
2- Add the brown sugar and stir until completely dissolved. (The sugar is essential for floating the unwhipped cream on top.) Blend in the Irish whiskey.
3- Shake the heavy cream a little, then pour it carefully over the back of a spoon, held just above the surface of the coffee. The layer of cream should float on the coffee without mixing. Serve hot, and drink the coffee through the layer of cream.
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