There is some debate on the origin of the word April to describe the fourth month of the Julian calendar. There is evidence that supports the etymological connection to the word ‘aperire’ (meaning to open- as in opening the Spring season), and also a connection to Aphrilis (derived from Aphrodite, as her major festivals took place this month. Whatever the case, April’s warmer weather, flowers, and fresh air inspire a sense of play, well-being, and romance. All good things!

Here near the Ravenson homestead, there is wisteria EVERYWHERE. It smells divine when you roll your windows down and drive past. However, be prepared for the pollen cloud to enter your lungs and ruin the experience. April is a month of beauty, inspiration, and sneezing fits that will probably make you pee if you’re a lady over a certain age. It’s all about balance.

We’ve also been seeing loads of cardinals, as well as other birds that I’m not that great at identifying. Lots of hawks, vultures, and owls. I’ll get to that later. The woods around our house are an iridescent green from all the new leaves coming forth, and everything is just stunningly beautiful. It’s hard to go outside and not get excited.

Lunations:
New moon April 15th, 9:57pm (EST) in Aries
Full moon April 29th, 8:58pm (EST) in Scorpio

Astronomy:
Mercury goes direct April 15th, 5:25am (EST)
Saturn goes retrograde April 17th, 8:39pm (EST)
Lyrids meteor shower peak April 21st- 22nd
Pluto goes retrograde April 22nd, 6:07am (EST)

Celtic Tree Month:
Alder (Mar 18th- April 14th): Balance, reawakening fertility, accelerated growth (good time for business or creative ventures), harnessing your hidden potential, balancing practical and mystical, release, foundations, determination, confidence, facing things you’ve been avoiding.
Willow (April 15th-May 12th): Resonance and harmony, creativity, fertility, feminine rights of passage, inspiration, love, love divination, sleep with a willow wand for vivid dreams, protection for underworld journeying, found near water, spring cleaning physically/mentally/emotionally/spiritually, letting go of the past

Holidays (mundane):
April 6: National Tartan Day
April 10: National Library Workers Day
April 17: Tax Day
April 22: Earth Day
April 25: Administrative Professionals Day
April 27: Arbor Day

Holidays (Pagan):
April 1: Veneralia- festival honoring Venus (love) and her overthrowing of Mars (war)- a day to celebrate peace
April 14- April 25: Old Norse Summer Days feast, where offerings were given and toasts were made to the deities
April 15- April 16: Feast of Hecate as goddess of transitions
April 16- April 17: Mounikhion Noumenia- Greek festival honoring all gods, where offerings were made
April 18- April 19: Feast of the Charities- Greek festival honoring the goddesses of charity
April 19- April 20: Feast of Aphrodite
April 21- April 22: Feast of Artemis
April 23- April 24: Feast of Poseidon and goddess Amphritrite
April 28- May 3: Floralia- Roman festival of the goddess Flora
April 30 (evening): Beltane begins!
April 30 (evening): Walpurgisnacht begins!

Themes for the month: Rebirth, fertility, potential, starting fresh, Spring cleaning, excitement, allergies, watching the seeds we’ve planted grow and flourish, Benadryl

General activities for the month: Gardening, hiking, yard work, cleaning house, airing out the house to shake out all the old stale air from the Winter, looking forward, getting outside, finishing taxes to close out the old year, putting away heavy sweaters and coats, picking flowers.

Herbs I’m using: Dandelion tea for detoxing, spinach and kale (not herbs per se, but I’m cooking healthier), lemon (I’m using the scent in homemade cleaning products to wake us up and freshen everything. It lends such energy to the atmosphere!)

Stones I’m using: Moss agate for growth and prosperity, Citrine for energy and motivation, Bloodstone for health (particularly cardiovascular) and vitality

Goddess of the Month: This month I’m working closely with my personal matron deities; Hecate and Inanna. They represent light and shadow, lessons that need to be learned from life AND death, and my path in between. It’s relevant for this time of year, when the light has overtaken the darkness, but we must still pay heed to the lessons we’ve learned from death and our ancestors.

So our April reading isn’t looking that great. But as this is a time of transition, cleansing, and gearing up for new things, sometimes it’s good to sweep away the old, even if it seems comfortable.

First, we see Justice reversed. So something is happening that just isn’t fair. There’s an imbalance of power, or a feeling that a decision has been made based on a prejudice or bias, and that’s affecting our lives in a major way.

Next, we have the King of Wands reversed. So this situation is just draining our energy. We aren’t able to manage our motivation, and none of our plans are working out. We’re feeling out of control and like we can’t make things happen for ourselves.

Last, we see The Tower. So something has to break for us to be able to move on. It could be our plans, our preconceived notions about what our lives were supposed to look like, or our supposed ‘stability’. This can be a really intense, difficult process, but it can also take us to the next level. Sometimes, we have to break down the structures that we build up around ourselves to make good changes in our life. The best way to deal with The Tower is to decide what it is that needs to be broken down, and to take that on ourselves instead of just waiting for disaster. If you try to build up reserves of resources (time, energy, family help, money), that can make things go a lot easier!

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An April Night
By Lucy Maud Montgomery

The moon comes up o’er the deeps of the woods,
And the long, low dingles that hide in the hills,
Where the ancient beeches are moist with buds
Over the pools and the whimpering rills;

And with her the mists, like dryads that creep
From their oaks, or the spirits of pine-hid springs,
Who hold, while the eyes of the world are asleep,
With the wind on the hills their gay revellings.

Down on the marshlands with flicker and glow
Wanders Will-o’-the-Wisp through the night,
Seeking for witch-gold lost long ago
By the glimmer of goblin lantern-light.

The night is a sorceress, dusk-eyed and dear,
Akin to all eerie and elfin things,
Who weaves about us in meadow and mere
The spell of a hundred vanished Springs.

My personal tides: The Tower card is really resonating with me, as my husbear just had another health setback. It doesn’t matter how focused I am on my plans and goals, sometimes things just come out of nowhere and smack us in the face. And that’s fine. That’s life. You just have to roll with it and do the best that you can. But it’s given me the focus I need to change the way we eat. Unfortunately, vegan isn’t the way to go for rebuilding his heart muscle, but I can make lots of veggies, and that’s always a good thing for me.

We also collided with an owl as we were driving home one night, and took him to a rescue the next day. As owls are sacred to both Hecate and Inanna, I’m seeing that as a sign of great change (confirmed by The Tower), and preparing myself for uncomfortable transition. We’re needing to raise money to keep our house right now, and I’m terrified that we won’t be able to make it. Or that I’ll have to sell my soul for the funds, and I have to decide if I’m willing to do that or if I want to just let it go and trust the universe to help me somehow. I also have my court date for my disability case coming up, and I just really have no idea how that’s going to go. I’m a bit terrified, and so is husbear. Hence, health trouble.

My personal goals: RAISE MONEY HOWEVER POSSIBLE. I’m selling my grandmother’s antique furniture, and possibly some other things as well. Honestly, this part doesn’t suck, as there’s really no reason for me to be suffocating under all this stuff anyways. I have a dream of clearing the house out and only having things I actually need or use. It’s easy to build up a lot of junk after living in a place for 14 years. Not to mention all the things I’ve ‘inherited’ after family members have passed- it’s just too much. I sold a car that had been sitting in my garage for 6 years, and it felt amazing. I feel all this space for new energy to flow, and I love it.

If I’m being really honest? I’d like a smaller house anyways. A ranch. Something with no stairs, no clutter, and no hole in the roof. So I’m kind of in this ‘let’s just see what happens’ space right now. I just don’t want to let this decision be made for me. I want to make it on my own terms.

So what is April bringing for you?  Do you feel huge changes in the air?  Are you drowning in your own fluids from allergies?  What flowers are blooming near you?

Blessed be!  <3