Unfortunately, Mystery is not much valued in our society that feels most comfortable when all the fundamentals of our world are understood and neatly fit into categories and niches, whether of science or religion. Mystery is found in abundance in ancient stories of the creation of the universe and of the bringing into being of life, and seems to have been a part of daily spiritual life when they were created. What are we missing by not celebrating more the joy we feel when we gaze up at the stars and wonder what is out there or into a baby’s eyes and think of the infinite possibilities of her future?

As it happens, we are actually surrounded by Mystery.  Dark energy and dark matter make up 95% of the universe (you can see it in the darkness of the ring in the photo above). We  do not understand what these are. You can read more from NASA by clicking here. We only know they exist because of their effect on such things as the rate of expansion of the universe, as I understand it. In other words, all the galaxies, stars, planets, and everything that makes up what we think of as the universe is only 5% of what exists. Someday dark energy and dark matter may be understood, but, for me, it is a visible symbol of Mystery’s delights brought to light.

When I think of Mystery, I think of winter, the dark time of year, when so much of life’s creation goes underground and makes ready for the emergence of spring, when we are more apt to go deep into the Mystery within ourselves and make ourselves ready for our own rebirth. The Summer Solstice can be thought of as the coming of the Dark, of the time of Mystery, just as the Winter Solstice is celebrated as the coming of the Light. The time of light has grown longer and longer and, the day after the Solstice, will begin to recede to make room for the now lengthening nights and all that they bring.

So, the Summer Solstice is the time to welcome the burgeoning of Mystery back into our world. But, at the same time, the hot, abundant days of summer also have their own Mystery. The succulence of the raspberry, the beauty of a peony or a rose, the wild exuberance of the grape vine – all these have an element of Mystery in the vitality of life within them.

This week of the Summer Solstice, as you plan how you will mark the day that has been of such importance all throughout human history, think of Mystery’s great part in this moment of the year. What is Mystery to you – both the Great Mysteries and the small every day ones? How can you add these into your observance, whether that is a formal ceremony or just a moment spent during the day looking up at the sky and feeling gratitude for the sun’s warmth? How can you remind yourself and others that, however much our daily lives may take up almost all our thoughts and time, Mystery surrounds us and is to be celebrated?

Image credit: NASA, ESA, M. J. Jee and H. Ford et al. (Johns Hopkins Univ.)

As I thought about the festive atmosphere surrounding these ordinary acts, I realized how deeply Beltane is rooted in the everyday life of our planet and all those beings who live on Her.  The renewal of life is what normally happens every day, but especially at this time of year, as long as nothing catastrophic interferes. Beings instinctively reproduce and bring forth new generations, people naturally want to nurture their own and other life forms, all of life is woven together in a delicate balance dedicated to the renewal of life.

Of course, humans, in particular, are constantly interfering with this constant life renewal with wars and other violence of all kinds and human-made poverty, homelessness, hunger, and injury, death, and disease.  These past two weeks I have been reminded of how wounding these acts can be to an entire population.  The town where I live is not far from Boston and almost everyone I know was personally affected by the Marathon bombing in some way, whether they had a connection to someone who was killed or injured or were shocked to see familiar places where they live, work, or shop transformed into battle zones. What I saw this past weekend was people drawing on their natural  bountiful and beautiful Beltane spirit, while not forgetting those still in need of help.

So, I am now seeing Beltane as not only a celebration of the season of nature’s fertile abundance, but also an affirmation of the joys and power of the acts of daily life and our relationships with our families and friends of all species that bring forth new life, whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually. So often it’s easy to think that we need to set aside a special time and place with symbolic activities to really become part of a celebration when, in fact, we are constantly surrounded by the spirit of what we are trying to bring into our lives.  This week, for my observance of this holiday, I think I will try to find ways to promote Beltane’s healing spirit as it is manifested in everyday activities of a 21^st century American suburb – gardening, encouraging kids, giving those traumatized a place to find support. What about you?

As spring finally comes to the Northern Hemisphere, here is a poem about pond lilies to gently bring you into line with the warm weather Earth.

Make Me a Pond Lily

Ever the eye in the center of the universe
The lily in the pond opens, one of millions of
Ordinary blooms in thousands of wild places.
I hold it in my muddy hands and let seep into me
Its moon hues, its human-soft petals, its sun-light expanded
Boundaries, floating in the calm, life-giving waters.

To begin, choose anything – a speck of dirt, a galaxy, a lily.
Witness it with love and no expectations.
Within a second, it will grow beyond everything you think you know,
And speak, and heal, and make peace.
Real life is like that, like a universe full of all
We need if we will just let it find asylum in our hands.

While all Creation expands, we retreat beneath our surface,
Close our petals, hide from what we truly seek.
May the lily’s center be our stillpoint.
May we stop there, turn around, and join all that is in an infinite
Openness, like our hands when we meet a beloved.
May all the universe be our beloved.

Society has changed greatly since Wives ‘ Feast Day began centuries ago. First, many women are not wives. Still, Wives’ Feast Day is for you even if you are not married. In fact, the word “wife” originally meant “woman,” and not specifically a woman who was married. And, almost all women I know shoulder significant housework duties, whether or not they are married, or live by themselves, with family, or with others, or whether they work outside the home or not.

Even the concept of “home” has changed. To me, making a “home” may mean making a house a place of peace and comfort, or it can mean creating a business, university, or community where everyone feels welcome, or making wherever one dwells “homelike” for those who do not have homes for whatever reason. So, Wives’ Feast Day should be considered a day for women to celebrate themselves for the considerable work they do to make themselves and others “homes” of all kinds.

I love that many women celebrate Wives’ Feast Day by gathering together among themselves to feast and have fun. One “home” we so often don’t recognize but which is essential to our happiness and health is the “home” we create with other women. Whenever we come together with other women and strengthen our bonds, talk about what is important to us, encourage each other, and create our community, we are making a very special kind of home that we all need and that makes possible our other work in the world outside our women’s “home.”

Of course, changes in society have also made it sometimes difficult to celebrate Wives’ Feast Day in the traditional way. On February 1, I will be up at 5:30 am and at work by 6:45 am, then home at 6 pm or so, with evening chores keeping me busy till time to go to bed – not much opportunity there for feasting. February 2, a Saturday, holds a little more promise, but still weekend chores generally make it hard for most of my friends to gather at any one time and place. I would imagine that many women can cite similar schedules.

That doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate Wives’ Feast Day. I think that what I will do is take a little extra time and go down to the local supermarket to get some special take-out for lunch, with maybe enough to share with the two or three women in my office. I’ll see if we can take even a half-hour to share some special food and time together. Perhaps on Saturday I’ll see if I can meet a friend for tea and make sure that I go ahead and have a piece of cake or cookie that I might not otherwise. It should also be said that more men are making “homes” so perhaps a “Wives’” Feast Day could include any men in your household who make your home with you if you like.

Wives’ Feast Day also coincides with Imbolc, the day when we mark the first stirrings of spring, of course. I think it is most appropriate to honor the Earth and Her abundance on Wives’ Feast Day, for the Earth is our greater home, the home that connects us all, and She is the source of all the food we feast on and the materials that we use to make our homes of whatever kind. Perhaps one way to celebrate Wives’ Feast Day is to also honor all those beings in nature, from the Earth herself, to animals, and plants, who join with us to make our homes, to reaffirm our place in the web that connects us all as Creators. Whether by simply being mindful of the Earth’s generosity as we eat or by doing some form of environmentally activism that helps sustain the Earth, we can make the Earth an essential part of our Wives’ Feast Day.

I am posting this a few days before Wives’ Feast Day so we can all do a little planning and perhaps celebrate this holiday. If you find some special way to observe Wives’ Feast Day, I would love to hear about it in a comment!