Eliza Daley ~ Wordcraft & Musing on Home & Hope
We don’t like mothers very much in this country. Yes, today is Mother’s Day, but how do you feel about that? Obligated to make a phone call, a Zoom meeting? Did you slap your head, remembering that you forgot to get a card? Did you then remember that cards aren’t really a thing anymore in… Continue reading The Daily: 10 May 2026
The name for the month of May may be derived from Maia, the wife of Vulcan and mother of Mercury, Roman goddess of the green growth of spring. Roman Maia may have been a native deity to the Italic peoples, possibly representing spring, though no myths survive to shed light on this shadowy ancient deity.… Continue reading The Daily: 6 May 2026
Tomorrow is Lady Day. Inasmuch as I celebrate the start of a new gardening year, tomorrow is it. March 25th was also the de facto New Year's Day for most of Roman history and remained a new year celebration up until the Enlightenment in many cultures derived from Rome. So tonight is New Year's Eve.… Continue reading The Daily: 24 March 2026
The Season of Renewal This year, the Vernal Equinox happens on March 20th at 10:46am. This is, I think, the most nebulous of the solar festivals. Yes, it does mark an actual solar event, but it’s not the one we typically hear about. It’s not much of an event at all. This festival is less… Continue reading The Daily: 20 March 2026
St Joseph, Patron of Fatherhood To me Christianity seems to be rather quiet on Joseph, the husband of Mary and the step-father of their deity. That may be because I've never lived in an Italian neighborhood where Joe is the patron saint of roughly half the male population (though I did get a faint whiff… Continue reading The Daily: 19 March 2026
Today is Pi Day, 3.14… (The date sort of breaks down after the first two decimal points. It was fun in 2015 though…) Most people ignore this date. It's really only noted among nerds... But in the last few years, I've turned it into a whole new thing — Pie in the Sky Day. This… Continue reading The Daily: 14 March 2026
It got above 50°F yesterday! And the sun shone in blue skies most of the afternoon. I opened a window... well... I cracked it open a sliver... for a couple hours... on the lee side of the house out of the wind... But still! No resultant frostbite. The furnace didn't even kick on... The snow… Continue reading The Daily: 9 March 2026
I woke in the darkness yesterday morning. The skies were clear. The temperature was 3°F. And the full moon was westering with a large bite out of its eastern side. I made hibiscus and ginger tea and took care of the cat's needs. I have been burning cedar incense in the basement because I read… Continue reading The Daily: 4 March 2026
World Wildlife Day March 3rd is the UN's World Wildlife Day. This is the day that the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora was signed in 1973. So on 20 December 2013 at the 68th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, March 3 was declared United Nations World… Continue reading The Daily: 3 March 2026
February First Fruits & Quirinalia To highlight just how different the seasonal cycle is depending on latitude, mid-February, the last ides of the ritual year in Rome, was a festival of the first-fruit offerings. While here in Vermont we are barely thinking about the growing season, never mind able to see actual earth, during the… Continue reading The Daily: 16 February 2026
By My Solitary Hearth 