For some reason, this holiday has always been hardest for me to grasp, yet perhaps because it's so close to my own birthday, it's the easiest one for me to be mentally prepared for!
I remember learning in a Russian class in college about some holidays the Orthodox Christians celebrate and one of them (I don't remember what it was called) took place around February. The whole theme centered around the sun; they made pancakes and anything round that could resemble the sun itself. As I learned more about pagan holidays and customs, I started considering universal needs of mankind.
In the evolution of belief and myth, I have to wonder how much man created things just to keep hope and optimism alive; a primieval esprit de corps! I don't know where you all live, but in the northern parts of the world, February is just about the worst month ever. It feels like winter has gone on forever and it's never going to end and it's easy to feel as sloppy and dirty as slush. You're tired of being cold, you're tired of all they grey skies and lack of color around you. So, to lighten to mood, you throw a party, right? (A few years ago, some friends and I actually threw a luau - bbq'd outside and all - in the snow!)
While we have celebrated the return of longer days with the Solstice, it seems like, by Imbolc, we are ready to go and then some, but actual planting season is still far away for some of us. Ay! If we believe all of our pagan how-to books and mix it with our history, we have to know that, for people in Europe, this could also have been a very scarey time. Are food stores going to last us until spring? Are we rationing enough in case we have a long winter? Will we have wood enough to keep us warm and dry? I can't imagine the hard work, the worry, and the waiting.
So, if Brigid is all that she is, she seems a fine enough aspect to tag to this holiday. We need her inspiration for ideas to keep us working and planning, we need her forge to stay fiery so we can continue to build and stay warm with activity.
I try to use Imbolc as a personal/spiritual check-in time. I've got lots of ideas because winter gives me lots of time to reflect and think, but Imbolc seems like a good time to start sorting out the to-do list.
Also, I wonder if it's simply a good time to realize that, while there's a long way to go yet, new life and a new cycle are around the corner.
Sorry for the long ramble. For as slacking as I get with other celebrations, Imbolc always finds me. It's a seasonal and spiritual huddle for me, like the cycle is at half time and the game could go either way. Imbolc is the next page in the playbook.
I really am not a sports person, but the analogy seemed to work! Again, sorry for the long ramble!
