Early Spring
March
Full Crow Moon
The ground softens and robins begin to appear as the first earthworms wriggle out. The cawing of crows signal the end of winter and the fall of snow is melting by day and freezing at night, allowing a thin crust to crunch underfoot. Children play in the snow once more and the faces of farmers and castle-folk alike are cast in smiles as they have survived yet another harsh winter.
Maple syrup is the new flavour and graces every menu for breakfast and dessert. The older children tend to make their first earnings by tree-tapping and selling off what they have collected at the markets, whose business consists mostly of the selling of fine and rudimentary apparel knitted or stitched over the long, cold moons when there was little else to turn idle hands to.
Art is another popular pastime during winter and on the day of the spring equinox (the 21st of March) very important fruits of such labours are displayed on nearly every door in the region. Generally they are meticulous carvings done in panels of lovingly prepared woods, though they can be tapestries or weavings displayed in the styling of a wreath.
Whatever the medium, all display an animal that best describes the family’s focus in this, the season of awakening; a frog for renewal, fertility and springtime; a bear as a protector, for physical strength and leadership (most often adorning he doors of homes that have lost loved ones); a pair of hummingbirds for devotion, life cycles, permanence and eternity, they are ferocious defenders of their territory, their hearts and tenacity defiant of their small size; a deer for those who hunt but also as a symbol of familial protection and swiftness in all deeds; a lizard symbolising perseverance and the keeping of secrets, it is an all-knowing creature; a tadpole for renewal and fertility but more potent than the frog, for the tadpole changes its body structure and is inherently more powerful for it; a turtle, a feminine symbol encapsulating renewal and fertility but also the perseverance of long-agedness; an eagle, a master of the skies and carrier of prayers, possessing wisdom and courage beyond human weakness and a symbol of visions, spirits and the future; and a wolf, a powerful symbol of the hunt, death and a wily portent that trouble may lie ahead but there is strength enough within to endure it.
The King’s own door is adorned with runners the same as those on display on the palace gates. On all of them is the same scene of all these animals interacting so that no favour for any animal spirit is shown, but the strengths of all are present.
It is tradition that you plant a seed of the tree type you made your door plate from – generally adding it to the line of windbreak trees for farmers, the courtyard for residents of the Innerkeep and to the tent pitch for those of the Outerkeep – once your door plate or tapestry is on display. In this way, the cycle of life is reinforced, no matter the chosen animal.
In the beginning of April there is a humming of preparation for the Egg Celebrations, where fertility and the circle of life is celebrated. Both Gods are honoured during this celebration, for new life can only begin when the old one gives way. It is a happy time of hopes and dreams for many.
