Greetings Dear Ones,

“April, come she will; when streams are ripe and swelled with rain”* are the lyrics that begin this simple tune. Its composer, Paul Simon, wrote that he was inspired by an English children’s nursery rhyme about a cuckoo bird, its spring arrival and the end of its short life in the autumn, “when autumn winds blow chilly and cold.”*

The vernal equinox signals the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere, and that, of course, happened last month on March 20-21. This seasonal marker recognizes the first day of the calendar year when the hours of the day share equally of day and night (well, not exactly, but almost!). But by early April, at the time you’ve received and are reading this newsletter, we already see the balance shift to more hours of daylight, until the fall equinox, when light diminishes daily until the Winter Solstice.

It is no wonder then, that the month of April contains so many celebrations, holidays and holy days across our planet, including Passover, Easter, and the Wiccan holiday of Ostara. And of course, the first Earth Day was proclaimed in the month of April, on the 22nd day in 1970. In 2023 many around the world recognize, without a doubt, that our ancestors were right: Spring, especially during the months of March and April, is to be celebrated by all. It reminds us of the cycles of all of life and the possibility of hope that lies within this lovely season of new life.

Celebrate all!

See you on Sunday!
Rev. Sally

* Words and Music by Paul Simon, 1965