HAWTHORN

When every haw has a thorn
Healing from the fey is born
Heart and hope become one
New possibilities, obstacles overcome

Hawthorn is the tree for May 13 through June 9 on the Celtic calendar.  This is the time of year in the northern hemisphere that life is in full robust renewal.  Winter is gone and the earth is celebrating.  The hawthorn in many ways reflects this time of year.  The first of May, in my part of the world, sees the hawthorn starting to leaf out with the blossoms following shortly after.  The haws, or fruit, then form and ripen in the autumn.

The edible blossoms and haws can be used for food and drink.  The leaves, fruit, and blossoms can be used for medicinal teas.  The thorns have been used for needles and the wood and root is used for tools and sacred items.  This small shrubby tree has historically been used to create a protective hedge around the home property or village.  If it is properly planted and cared for, hawthorn produces a thick, thorny, impenetrable hedge, separating the relative safety of the village from the perceived dangers beyond.  The village healer (the hedge witch) would work this hedge and the forest near by for the medicines and resources to create sacred and ceremonial tools.

Hawthorn is considered to be the sacred union of the masculine (the thorn) and the feminine (the haw) coming together in balance.  It symbolizes protection and fertility, life and death, gateway and barrier, the sacred expression of love, and the guard against oppression.  Hawthorn is one of the plants that was considered to be sacred by the Fey, as well as being sacred to a number of spiritual traditions that were practiced where it grows.

This sacred tree was used to heal the broken heart, manifest love, and create fertility spells.  If you are looking for luck and happiness, hawthorn may bring that, too.  This tree of the Fey guards wells and springs and creates a gateway to the world of the Fey.  The branches are favored for magical tools and the root i used to create boxes to hold hopes and dreams.

Like the season that it represents, hawthorn reminds us of the patience and persistence required to overcome obstacles and to wait for the right time to make a move.  If we open our hearts to the new possibilities and transformations, then we too become a part of the sacred expression of life.