“The second light of Advent is the light of plants, Plants that reach up to the sun and in the breezes dance.”
Today we are moving deeper into December, and the light is feeling really scarce now. It’s that time of year when 3pm feels like twilight, and the damp cold seems to seep into the brickwork of my home. So it seems strange that this week, under the Waldorf rhythm, we honour the Plant Kingdom.
Usually, when we think of plants, we think of the riotous blooms of June or the harvest of September. But I think the plants show their true character now. This is the time of the Survivors: the Holly, the Ivy, the Yew, and the velvet mosses that seem to glow a serpentine green in goshawk grey afternoons.
While my capacity for studio work has been lower than usual, I’ve been ‘travelling’ through my imagination, my sketchbooks and my design work. I’ve been deep-diving into plant folklore for a series I’m currently writing. There is so much magic in the winter foliage. Did you know that bringing evergreens indoors was originally a way to give the nature spirits a warm place to hide during the harsh winter? It wasn’t just decoration; it was an act of hospitality.
I feel a great kinship with the Ivy right now. It doesn’t bloom when it’s easy; it blooms when the days are shortening, providing the very last sugar-hit for the insects before winter hits. It’s tenacious. It binds things together. It clings on when the wind tries to tear it down. I admire its audacity to thrive.
I’m taking inspiration from that tenacity as I go back to my drawing board. I am finalising some designs that I can’t wait to share with you once the legal boring bits (design registration!) are sorted. But let’s just say… if you love botanical folklore and the stories held by the hedgerows, watch this space.
Before I go. We often walk past Ivy without REALLY looking at it. This week, I challenge you to find a patch of Ivy and look—really look—at the veins. Look for the late-season berries. See if you can spot anything sheltering inside the tangle. There is a whole ecosystem in there. Let me know what you find.
Selina x
