Winter Solstice Gathering- make Haw Brandy & Haw Gra Balls and more...

An invitation to restore, reconnect & reimagine our herbal traditions.

Reimagining Hawthorn as a way to reconnect with our landscape and support us through winter

beginning with a Winter Solstice gathering.

Restoring ancient traditions can allow for gentle healing through winter. Medicinal plants can

support us through winter and remind us how to slow down, keep grounded and focused on our

heart and wellbeing. This is a chance to avail of the plant’s energy that is sent underground to its

roots; a time for us to hunker down and imagine our reawakening as we look forward to Imbolc. It

is symbolically a reminder of those that went before us who were returned to the earth, the

darkness or the world beyond the margin of what we perceive. The winter Solstice marks a time in

the astronomical calendar for us to gently reawaken with the gradual lengthening of the day and

become more in tune with our circadian rhythm. The more we are connected with our ancient

traditions and remembrance of the ways of our ancestors the more rooted, grounded and

reassured we feel. We do not have to relive the traditions of the past but rather recreate our

relationship with nature as we renegotiate our path forward during this time of great shift.

I would like to consider Hawthorn to recreate a story that will be meaningful to all our communities.

We will explore the idea of the heart and the heart beat as opposed to the breath which is the focus

of yoga and eastern traditions. As a society, we tend to look outside, beyond our borders in our

quest to grow spiritually. There has always been exchange and cross fertilisation of ideas from

other cultures and traditions which is of huge value, however, if we reexamine Hawthorn as a

quintessential Irish tree of our landscape, it has the potential to unlock great love, hope, strength

and spirit…by synching our own heart beat with the rhythm of nature. So, we will focus on

heartbeat rather than breath. We will also look at the idea of boundaries and how Hawthorn can

represent that, how do we protect our own heart from ache? A tree such as hawthorn can awaken

our own creative process, it can be a portal to poetically reimagining our future and establishing the

continuation of traditions for those come after us.

In herbal medicine the hawthorn is a great ally for those with ailments of the heart. Herbs work on

an energetic, emotional and physical level; an exploration of Hawthorn can support us navigating

through the dark as we look after our hearts and give ourselves the love we need through the

winter months. A combination of the the hope December 21st brings, with the heart warming gifts

of Hawthorn can accompany us to Imbolc, ready to celebrate the great Brighid.

Practical activity:

- Demonstrate how to make haw brandy and give a little taster.

- Make Grá Balls (very easy & participants could get involved) using haw berry infused brandy or

syrup for those who don’t drink alcohol.

Give examples of other uses of the berries e.g. haw ketchup, haw jelly etc.

Dandelion root beverage as a way to demonstrate how this bitter can aid sluggish digestion

during the cold, dark months.

I see this as an introduction to future workshops of the Celtic quarterlies which is why I allude to

Brighid as it is a natural follow on from this and hopefully would encourage participants to return for

a celebration of Imbolc.