Spring Equinox
Ostara marks the first day of Spring. Day and night are equal as Spring begins to enliven the environment with new growth and more newborn animals. Many people feel “reborn” after the long nights and coldness of winter. The Spring Equinox is a celebration of life, of rebirth, a return of life to the earth, and the return of the dead king. Yet light is in ascendance; in the days that follow the darkness gives way to the growing light. It is a time to embrace both the light and the darkness, to acknowledge the dualities within ourselves, to bring polarities into balance, and honor the balance in all things.
It is a celebration of the awakening of the Earth. All around us, the Earth reveals her vitality, in the soft haze of the first greening, in the swelling of buds, in the song of the robin. The seeds within the soil have just begun to sprout and are pushing out into the sunlight. Likewise, within us it is time for the seeds we have nurtured since Yule to come into the light and begin to flourish. It is a time of new beginnings, the freshness of dawn. The Earth is young again and so are we. Now is a time for planting, and traditionally many people bless the seeds for their gardens on this day.
Ostara is a fertility festival, both summoning and celebrating fertility. Spring is the time when the animals come out 
of hibernation. It is also the time when new life in nature is born, and conceived. The egg is an ancient symbol of fertility and possibility. The gathering of eggs was done around this time and comes from the time when people would harvest the eggs of wild birds, which are pastel in color. The people would also use the nests as a basket to carry the eggs. In modern culture it is traditional to dye or paint eggs on this day. Eggs are often painted with symbols, images or colors to magically evoke qualities or events which we desire in our lives.
