In a repeat of last year, I've missed Imbolc. This year it wasn't just a case of being distracted, I've got some really quite traumatic stuff going on which has used up all my spoons, to say the very least.
On top of that, I've been forgetting my Cill Shifts (the phone reminders for the last 2 have sounded while I've been visiting my dying relative on the hospital ward, so I've dismissed them and then forgotten by the time I got home).
So, it felt appropriate to try and plan not just a celebration but something more meaningful, incorporating some sort of offering to or at least acknowledgement of Brigid, by way of 'penance'.
In this post I'll therefore make a record of my research & planning in part 1, and then write up my 1st March activities in part 2.
Shout out to Juni over at The Cauldron, who posted the Brighid Resources thread which I've used as a starting place.
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Part 1 -- research and planning 28/02/2026
So, this didn't go according to plan right from the start. I ended up getting a little side-tracked and looking at triple goddesses in general, including Cerridwen and even The Morrigan.
This is because sometime previously I'd had the name Cerridwen -another triple Goddess- calling to my mind out of nowhere. And that event came back to me as I began trying to research Brigid, thus leading to the side-tracking.
However -interestingly- a few common threads did surface. Creativity/inspiration, renewal/ transformation, and sacred craft. There's also a fire connection, with Brigid being closely associated with the hearth, and Cerridwen with the cauldron used to brew the Awen.
As much as we're dismayed by AI these days, Co-pilot did manage to put it a fascinating way:
If Brigid is the spark that ignites, Cerridwen is the cauldron that transforms. One begins the poem; the other deepens it. One brings the dawn; the other stirs the night.
Anyways, back to my belated Imbolc for 2026. Numerous websites talk about tending a flame, obviously. So that'll definitely form some part of my day, and a nice easy one to accomplish since I already have everything I'll need. Rather than just lighting a candle, though, I plan to devote more attention to the 'tending' aspect.
Also, the LearnReligions website has this to say:
"Take a few moments and meditate on the light of your candles. ... Visualize the light as a warm, enveloping energy that wraps itself around you, healing your ailments, igniting the spark of creativity, and purifying that which is damaged."
Another common theme is the crafting of a Brigid's cross, and this is something I'd originally thought I might do. Unfortunately, though, I've left it too late -as always- to source any materials. Unless I can think of a way to do this via paper-craft.
One website, PaganGrimoire.com talks about a White Wand tradition:
"This is not as well known as the Brigid’s Cross, but Brigid’s white wand, known as the slatag Bride (little rod) or barrag Bride (birch of Bride), is perhaps Brigid’s most important symbol. It is a small, straight wand made of peeled wood traditionally made from birch, broom, or white willow. It is with this wand and her breath that she reawakens the world as she breathes life into the mouth of dead winter."
This rather appeals to me. And as I'll now be -unexpectedly- out & about tomorrow (at an anti-facist protest), I'll be able to try and look out for a suitable twig/branch which can be crafted into a wand (though it's unlikely to be the correct wood, since I don't think the march route will have been planned on the basis of the tree species...)
I'm aware that Imbolc is associated with milk and dairy, so I will probably treat myself to a drink of watered down milk when I get home tomorrow, to rehydrate. I'll also likely make a simple offering of some water.
So, in summary, I'm aiming for:
- Flame-tending, & visualisation exercise
- Papercrafting, possibly (but probably not, honestly -- it's going to be a busy day as it is...)
- Look for & -hopefully- craft a white wand
- A celebratory drink of milk & an offering of water
***
Part 2 -- execution & reflection(s) 01/03/2026
Well, true to form, the execution deviated from the plan right off the bat, too. This was because I'd expected not to have the energy to do the entire protest march, but ended up doing the whole thing afterall. So it used up a much bigger chunk of the afternoon than expected (plus a lot of energy).
However, given that Brigid is associated with protection I like to think this is actually somewhat fitting, anyway. Being a part of an anti-fascist protest = doing my bit in the fight for protection of marginalised groups from persecution. Arguably?
Although the march route ended up in a park, it didn't go through the park long enough that I could find a twig/branch for a wand. (The rest of the route had been city streets.) Plus I was exhausted, so I lingered long enough for one more speaker and then headed home.
I lit a candle at sunset, and when that one went out I lit another from it (well, I tried to, but accidentally extinguished the first, so I had to fetch a match). Circumstances [read: row with spouse] meant that I wasn't in the right frame of mind to do the visualisation, either.
Copilot tells me I can indeed make a Brigid's cross out of paper (and promises to provide me with instructions) It also gave me the idea to use book pages (a very junk-journal approach) as the paper. However, by the time dinner was sorted tonight it's gotten late, so I'm going to do that tomorrow instead. I will try and attempt the flame-tending and visualisation tomorrow, too.
I put an offering of water in a small glass bowl and placed it on the dining table, next to the table lamp (I do hope Brigid won't mind when one of the cats takes a little drink, because it's guaranteed to happen).
Recalling Brigid's association with healing, I decided to skip the drink of milk (I've seriously had enough calories this weekend as it is, for various reasons). Instead, I opted to make an infusion of palo santo, because I feel I could use its healing and soothing right now.
So, altogether, today hasn't been as much about honouring Brigid as I'd have originally liked. And it was all very 'thrown-together' last minute, in spite of my original intentions to get with the planning. But at least I achieved something.
If I'm successful at fashioning a Brigid's cross tomorrow I'll try and add a photo of it to this post.
Oh, I just looked up and a cat is drinking some of the offering. I guess I'll give the rest to the houseplants and refresh the water in the bowl...
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