Ostara, spring season, time for change…

On the 21st of March we started the Spring season.

This special date on which day and night are equally long has been celebrated for centuries. The pagans and witches call this festive day Ostara.

Ostara celebrates the return of spring, the return of more sunlight and longer days. It is the period where all seeds start sprouting again, where nature gets alive again. Animals and insects wake up from their winter sleep, the birds are busy chirping and building their new nest, the trees start growing leaves again.

In their attempt to control and eradicate paganism, the Catholic Church took over these symbols and linked it to Easter. That’s why many of us have forgotten where these Easter symbols come from.

But the celebration of spring, of return of longer days and of cleansing time can be found all over the world, in different cultures…

In Iran, they celebrate the Chahar Sanbeh Suri festival. For them this is a time to purify their living spaces. The equinox is welcomed for 13 days accompanied by fires, which represent purification and light.

In Chichen Itza, the ancient Mayan city, many people gather on the spring and fall equinox to observe the shadows created by the sun on the staircases of the Kukulkan pyramid that resemble snakes. In the spring, the serpents descend the pyramid.

When we look at the anglo-saxon culture, we find the legend of Eostre, from which the term Ostara is derived.

Eostre is the Goddess of the moon and of fertility.

She was very fond of the children who followed her everywhere. One day a bird came to her and she transformed it into a rabbit, her favourite animal. But the rabbit was sad that it couldn't fly anymore and cover her eggs. The children asked Eostre to transform the animal again. She managed to transform the rabbit into a bird again, just long enough for it to cover her eggs and let them hatch. Afterwards the bird transformed into a rabbit again. The rabbit decided to distribute its eggs to the children, to thank them for their kindness. That's why many cultures today tell children that the Easter bunny will come and bring some eggs. It's a remainder of this legend. 

In our modern world, among atheists, there are also various traditions: now is the time to start sowing, and by doing that, they are celebrating the return of light!

Why talk about all these traditions today?

Because in our current Western society we have forgotten to celebrate and thank nature for all it gives back to us. We often disrespect our planet and ourselves. We are so caught up in the rat race that we forget to pause for a moment and observe what’s happening around us.

Baby chicks only pop out from their egg when they have fully matured and are ready for the world. If the egg is broken from the outside, the chick might not be able to survive, but when it breaks its shell open from the inside, then there is no doubt, the chick is ready to face life in all its glory.

The same goes for us humans. We can get guidance and coaching to move forward in life, but we have to be willing to change and transform. We have to actually do something with the guidance we get. A coach won’t “fix us”, but will trigger us into finding answers to our questions ourselves. A coach will give us the boost or push we need to understand where we are in life and if we are ready to break out of our shell.

We can now benefit from nature’s energy. The equinox pushes us to reconnect to nature, to earth and to the subtle energies of growth and fertility.

In a more general sense, it is now an ideal time to do some cleansing. Hence, the name spring cleaning!

But you can take this spring cleaning to all levels of your life. Both in your home, as in your life!

• It is the appropriate time to think about which seeds you want to grow. Did you dream of a new project during the winter months? Then now it the time to sow the seeds, to let the idea grow and let it emerge out of the darkness.

• It is also an ideal time to let go of toxic relationships in your life and to reconnect with family and loved ones. See where you can harmonise relations, where you can build new relationships or let go of people that have a toxic impact on you (certain people can have a draining effect on you, or are so negative that they put you down with them, in an unconscious way). Don’t judge toxic people, they still have to come out of their egg when the time is right. Send them love and compassion and let them go. You want to be surrounded in these times by positive, supporting or loving people.

• Now is also the right time to cleanse your home. Empty wardrobes and cupboards. Give away what you don’t use or don’t need. Throw out what’s broken. Do with less. Less is better 😉

• Clean every corner of your house and do a space clearing afterwards. If you want to know how to do a pace clearing, read my article here. You will feel much lighter afterwards. Your house will breathe again, will be refreshed. And you will feel the flow again in your home.

• Cleansing and cleaning up, even sorting, means the QI (vital energy) gets to flow again. In dusty, cluttered spaces, the Qi stagnates and creates negative vibes. These vibes can create discomfort, disease, fatigue, bad luck or misfortunate events, etc. So you definitely want to get rid of those stagnating energies.

• Also, do a spring cleaning in your life: where are you at professionally? Are you still satisfied with what you’re doing? Do you need some change? Maybe it’s about time you asked for that raise now.

• Draw up the balance of your life: make a list with two columns. In the + column, list all the things / activities that give you energy. In the – column write down all the activities or tasks that take away your energy. Ideally, you have an 80-20% ratio. 80% in the + column. Take an objective look at your columns. If there’s a lot more in the – column then you will have to do some cleaning up there too… What can you let go of? What is unnecessary or not efficient or not useful anymore? What can you delegate? What can you cross off? What can you add to the + column? Or can you change your perception?

• Maybe something feels like it’s draining your energy, but actually it’s because of the way you look at it. Doing the dishes can become a fun activity if you do it with some good music on, dancing while you wash, doing it with a smile. Using this moment to practice mindfulness and focus on your breathing. Or doing it together as a family while talking about everyone’s day. Then suddenly this activity becomes a + instead of a -, because you transformed the way you look at the activity, you changed your perception.

Spring is the time of plans and projects.

Leo Tolstoy

After your spring cleansing and cleaning, drawing up the balance, you should be feeling much lighter. It then becomes clearer for you where you’re at and what you want to achieve.

This season is not only a season to plant your seeds and let them grow, but to also think about your long-term vision.

What are your goals for the rest of 2021? What do you want to achieve? Is there something you’ve always dreamed of doing that you could do this year?

Have a sort of draft plan of what you want to accomplish or do this year. Dare to step out of your comfort zone. Dare to make more adventurous plans for yourself and your family.

Just thinking about stuff you would like to is not enough. You’ll never do them. But write them down, visualise the end goal, make a mood board, start planning the first steps… Now that will get you somewhere.

Flowers don’t worry about how they’re going to bloom. They just open up and turn toward the light and that makes them beautiful.

Gustav Mahler

I hope this article inspired you and that it gives you the necessary motivation to start freshening up your life and home.

And like I always tell my clients: start small, one step at a time. All you have to do is take a first step and the other steps will follow. Before you know, you’ll have achieved more than you could have thought of.

And if you need a little help to get your life back on tracks, or if you need some guidance to create the life of your dreams, than reach out and I’ll gladly help!

Have a great time making plans and celebrating this wonderful time of the year!