Today, I set off in pursuit of snowdrops.
I’ve lived in the valley long enough now to know exactly where the abundant pockets of seasonal flowers grow.
Where to find the first whispers of hawthorn blossom .
Where to spot a grand magnolia (on tiptoes & over a high fence).
Which paths to tread deep into the woodland to find an opening filled with an electric shock of bluebells.
I was clearly a little early today on my pilgrimage toward the secret snowdrops.
When I arrived at the spot, the promise of them was definitely there - their slim green bodies standing tall, anticipating blooming in a silent twinkle!
Soon they hushed.
What really took my breath away this morning, as I was on the return home, were these gorgeous ghost leaves.
How shockingly white they shimmered against the green, warming the earth. They were like a veil hiding winter behind them.
How clever is nature - she always knows what we need to hear.
I took these shell-like-fragile-ghost-leaves to be a sign.
A sign that letting go can be breathtakingly, bravely beautiful.
Accepting what we are & where we are & what we have makes us shine bright against the landscape. Despite all the odds.
Letting go is fleetingly, delicately powerful. To shed the layers of preconceived judgment of what should be right, just to stand beholden & bare.
A naked truth that can’t be ignored.
I think I left an old part of me behind with the ghost leaves. Ready to crumble & return into the earth. A blessing & a gift.
And then I walked home, warmed by the Imbolc sun on my back, I felt lighter. Lighter in my heart & lighter in step.
Hannah xxx
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