Another Kind of Lent & Easter

                                                                                Flowering Tulip Tree 

4 Holy, holy, holy! Lord God almighty!

All thy works shall praise thy name in earth

and sky and sea;

holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty,

God in three persons, blessed Trinity!           Voices United 315

 “They go publishing the ‘chronological cycles’ and ‘movable festivals of the Church’ and the like, but how insignificant are these compared with the annual phenomena of your life, which fall within your experience! 

The signs of the zodiac are not nearly of that significance to me that the sight of a dead sucker in the spring is. That is the occasion for an immovable festival in my church. Another kind of lent.” – Henry David Thoreau, Journal, October 16, 1859

The Christian season of Lent has come and gone and because of our lengthy and cold Winter in Southern Ontario it felt much longer than 40 days (plus Sundays). Now we are into the season of Easter, this one 50 days leading to Pentecost. Eastertide is usually filled with promise in these parts with resurrection of Creation even as we celebrate the Resurrection of Christ. 

I came upon the lovely quote from one of Thoreau's extensive journals and it certainly rang true for me, although I'm happy to make room for both the liturgical seasons and the experiences of the four seasons of the calendar year. I also like the Japanese notion of micro-seasons, of which they have 72! These note the subtle changes from week to week in the natural world. I've included some examples below.

We are revelling in the rapid changes in recent days, including the prospect of blossoms on our tulip tree and buds on our lilac bushes. Our garlic is sprouting and our rain barrels are back out and replenished. Two days ago a blue heron flew over as we caught some welcome rays on the side deck and yester-morning a loon flew over in full voice as I took blue boxes to the curb. 

These are all sacred moments for me even as I welcome the Easter season and all it holds. I'm thinking that I should soon invite the Trenton United Church congregation to mosey on over to the tiny forest we planted last Fall following worship.

 Sunday and days of sun are holy, holy, holy. 

1 Now the green blade rises from the buried grain,

wheat that in dark earth many days has lain;

love lives again, that with the dead has been:

love is come again, like wheat arising green.

                                     Voices United 186

立春 Risshun (Beginning of spring)
February 4–8	東風解凍 Harukaze kōri o toku	East wind melts the ice
February 9–13	黄鶯睍睆 Kōō kenkan su	Bush warblers start singing in the mountains
February 14–18	魚上氷 Uo kōri o izuru	Fish emerge from the ice
雨水 Usui (Rainwater)
February 19–23	土脉潤起 Tsuchi no shō uruoi okoru	Rain moistens the soil
February 24–28	霞始靆 Kasumi hajimete tanabiku	Mist starts to linger
March 1–5	草木萌動 Sōmoku mebae izuru	Grass sprouts, trees bud
啓蟄 Keichitsu (Insects awaken)
March 6–10	蟄虫啓戸 Sugomori mushito o hiraku	Hibernating insects surface
March 11–15	桃始笑 Momo hajimete saku	First peach blossoms
March 16–20	菜虫化蝶 Namushi chō to naru	Caterpillars become butterflies