So, Halloween is coming at the end of next month. For northern hemisphere people, it’s going to be dark and magic for All Hallows Eve. Ours will have that special night probably in glorious sun, with families gathered on community corners and gardens all enjoying the costume spectacle. Last year, we arrived in time to wander around the neighbourhood and felt so alien! Well, we’re now where the seasons and events are upside down. It takes some getting used to.
In December, I wrote to you about how to decorate for Christmas when we take away all the references to deep midwinter. As we enter Spring, I realise that this is the first time it won’t be associated with Easter. Back in cold Autumn April, I found it truly difficult not to rely on the usual Spring associations for new shoots from the dark earth, having to archive my favourite ‘Now the Green Blade Rises’ hymn. A few weeks ago, we watched an Aussie period drama where the core scenes were a Christmas in June celebration. It’s not just hard for just us, but for all the settler immigrants who come from the northern hemisphere.
Me being me, I remind myself of a truth I use whenever I have to figure out something difficult; “the reverse is also true.” In the midst of a horrific event, there is goodness working in and at the same time. As people experience trauma, there is strength working at the same time. We make it through awful times because treasuring life is active as well. The glorious events we celebrate are shared by people feeling anything but glorious, but the celebration carries them.
Down under, we’ve been working on seeing so very much in new ways. These upside down celebrations, turned inside out and taken from the seasons in which we’ve known them, have new things to say. What is also true is that so many people have only known these celebrations in the seasons of their homeland. In this new life of ours, we’re taking time to see what has also - always - been true. To find the stories underneath creation’s seasonal associations is helping us see deeper truth in relation with creation in new and significant ways.
Lighten up, Elizabeth. Here is a little slice of my painting One, digitally simplified and turned upside down. Even a painting we know well can be seen completely differently. 😊