Natural Beginnings

Happy New Year! Okay, but why? Why January 1? This choice of date traces its origins back to Julius Caesar and the ancient Romans. The word January itself comes from the Roman god Janus, who has two faces looking to the past and the future simultaneously. Makes sense, I suppose. It’s certainly testifies to the long-lived influence of the Roman Empire, and the global dominance of European culture over the past few centuries.

Other cultures throughout history and around the world chose different dates to begin their new year’s cycle. Frequently, these were chosen to match up with a natural ending or beginning such as the end of the harvest, or the coming of spring. Even today, other calendars exist. In large north American cities, it’s common to find celebrations of Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year), Chinese New Year, and Islamic New Year in addition to mainstream secular January 1.

January 1 doesn’t feel right to me on a spiritual level. It’s arbitrary and artificial, and plunks the whole idea of new beginnings smack dab into a time of year that is relatively stagnant in the natural world. Where I live, January heralds a time of deep, dark, relatively unchanging winter that lasts for (at least) two more months.

When it comes to new beginnings, spring feels far more appropriate to me than January. Watching new pale green shoots emerge from the moist earth, seeing the first robin, noticing the lengthening days…all these seem to herald a fresh new year. The official beginning of spring, the equinox (on March 21 or 22), may or not feel particularly “spring-y” around here, especially if not much has changed in terms of weather. On the other hand, if the weather has been mild, the first day of spring may be almost an afterthought coming on the heels of a few weeks of mild weather.

This year, I’m trying something different. Call it a more intuitive new year. I’m saving my new year’s rituals (such as starting a new journal and making a few resolutions) for spring, but not the “official” spring. Instead, nature will be my guide. When the first sunny yellow crocus (the yellow ones are always first in my garden) blooms, I will know that spring has truly arrived, and my new year has begun. It’s a natural beginning to the annual cycle of life where I live. Sure, I’ll do all the obligatory change-the-calendar type activities in January. But in my heart, I’ll follow the promptings of the earth and its cycles.

Tuning in to the earth and making nature part of your life is what Green Spirit is all about. What about you? What natural harbingers of change might work for your own intuitive new year? Maybe it’s the return of certain migratory birds. Maybe the break-up of winter ice would be a good time for you. Maybe it’s the first rainfall that ends the dry season. Any of these would be a fine choice. I encourage you to think about the natural cycles that you see all around you. Be observant. Choose one that speaks to your heart, and honor it in your own way, in Nature’s time.

Green Blessings.