Jani, St. John’s Eve, is one of the most important of the ancient Latvian festivals. Nature’s growth has risen to its purest point in the cycle of the year and all is bathed in the healing light of the longest day. When the almost dark falls a great fire is lit and its light beckons all of Janis’ children to gather, singing.
In the hours before the bonfire, we gathered flowers, leaves, and grasses for crowns and wreaths. Saplings were cut to stand at the doorways; others were bent and tied into circles to be hung on windows. Walking through the fields and forest, I took little pictures of the simple things in nature and of the beauty of the light as I picked daisies or gathered three kinds of grasses. I spoke my thank you, up and out, for the cycle and balance of nature, for the gathering of family, and for the simple beauty of the moment. It is a deep, graceful, beauty that comes not just by union with great nature but by participation with those who are deeply thankful for all that nature is and will be.
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