Alban Eiler

I wouldn't call myself a Druid, but my spiritual self does draw on elements of the modern Druid tradition. This is not to be confused with the ancient Druids, about whom next to nothing is known. The modern Druid revival began in Britain in the eighteenth century, and has evolved in many directions over the years.

Druidry is a practice (as opposed to an ideology) that involves active connection with the natural world, and one of its tenets is that everything moves in cycles. The cycle of a heartbeat, of a breath, a day, a week, a month, a year, a lifetime, a civilization, a species, a planet. In the Druid world, things move through birth, youth, flowering, fruiting, maturity, and final ripening to an end--- and every end is a beginning.

For Druids, and for lovers of fruit trees, the cycle of the year holds much meaning. Today, as I write this, is one of the major Druid holidays, Alban Eiler (AHL-ban EYE-ler). That's the Celtic name for the vernal equinox, one of the two days of the year when the length of the daytime exactly equals the night. The sun rises due east and sets due west. Winter ends, spring begins.

Let's slow down from our frenetic human pace, and imagine the cycle of the year from the point of view of a fruit tree. Each day the sun journeys across the sky, faster than we can turn our leaves to soak in more of its energizing rays. Around the time of the winter solstice, it follows a path low in the sky, day after day. As winter progresses, the arc slowly moves higher, adding some seconds of daytime with each pass. As we approach Alban Eiler, these changes quicken. Our tree now sees the arc of the sun rising rapidly, as the daytime rapidly overtakes the night.

At some point, according to its species and a thousand local factors, our tree springs into action. It pops out new leaves, starts adding another layer of trunk diameter, and begins preparations to flower and fruit at its appointed time later in the year. It needs nutrients, and we provide its first fertilization of the season. Most trees want a lot of water now, too, and since in these parts spring is often a dry season, we attend to irrigation needs.

As spring matures, the sun rises and sets more and more to the north, its arc and the length of daytime once again stabilizing. Around the time of the summer solstice, when the sun is most intense, the summer rains will begin--- if we're lucky--- and we start the long road back to winter. To begin the cycle anew.

Surely every fruit tree lover has a little bit of Druid inside. Happy Alban Eiler!