The Celtic Wheel is ready to turn toward the Vernal (Spring) Equinox that falls on Friday, March 20, 2026, at 10:46 a.m. (EDT). In our northern hemisphere that means the earth is warming and softening with the returning sun. Imbolc seedlings sprouting on the windowsill are ready for garden beds or outdoor pots. The stark colors of late winter are giving way to springtime pastels. Apple, plum, peach, and cherry trees are donning beautiful blossoms. Delicate pink, yellow, and lavender flowers are bringing a blush of color to meadows and forests. Equinox is a time when daylight and darkness dance in equal balance. It is a time for planting seeds, new beginnings, and finding balance.
Seasonal Themes and Nuances
Planting ~ Spring equinox is a fine time to get outside and work in the dirt! Gardening helps to lower cortisol levels and blood pressure. It promotes relaxation, reduces anxiety, and improves both mood and physical strength. Gardening is a great way to get out into the fresh air and sunshine after a long winter indoors. This is also a time for ontological seedlings (intentions, goals, ideas) to come out of the dreaming stage and spring into life! Bringing goals into reality requires planning and practical considerations. If you were able to journal your intentions or create a vision board earlier this year, now is the time to revisit those ideas to give them shape and form. Consider using the SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-based) goal-setting methodology during your ontological planting season.
Finding Balance ~ The season’s equal sunlight and darkness offer a reminder for balance in all areas of life. Working folks might want to begin by examining the work/life balance. Is there enough time for family, friends, personal reflection, downtime? If not, what are some ways to remedy that imbalance? Overwhelm, stress, unfinished business, boredom, or anxiety in any area of life can represent an imbalance. Some areas to consider are finances, travel, relationships, housekeeping, mental or physical health, creative, professional, or educational pursuits. Set clear intentions and plan activities to bring the balance back. Yoga, Tai Chi, or Qigong can bring body, mind, and spirit into balance.
Renewal and Rebirthing ~ The Vernal Equinox is the day that the sun enters the sign of Aries, representing an astrological New Year’s Day to begin the twelve-month zodiacal cycle. No matter what kind of seeds we are pondering or planting, this is the time for renewal, rebirth, and new beginnings. This timing enthusiastically invites a fresh start. When things become passe, irrelevant, worn out, or obsolete, beginning a new job, relationship, or adventure can be exciting. Before leaping into a new endeavor or era, consider taking time to honor and release the old one. This can be accomplished in a simple farewell ceremony. Using plain paper, write about the situation being left behind. What was wonderful or difficult about it? How does it feel to be leaving it behind? Conclude with a gratitude or “letting go” statement. Next, add a pinch of sage or palo santo to a burning bowl, fireplace, or campfire and burn the paper. Take a deep breath and begin anew!
Soothing Sweets for the Season ~ Further Shore has hosted Death Cafés for hundreds of participants where we gather to discuss death, while enjoying a cuppa alongside a sweet treat. Death Café originated in England where tea and cakes were preferred. As we continue to honor Wayne’s legacy, and in the spirit of Death Café, this year’s newsletter will offer recipes for soothing sweets from the Food Doctor and Friends cookbook. This vegan Carrot Cake highlights a vitamin C-packed root veggie that is the perfect springtime dessert. Make it gluten free by using your favorite GF flour and 5 tsp xanthan gum.
- 1 cup oil
- 2 cups sugar
- 1½ cups soymilk
- 1 (20 oz. can crushed pineapple)
- 3 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- ½ cup raisins
- 3 cups flour
- 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. cinnamon
- ½ tsp. allspice
Beat together oil, sugar, and soy milk. Stir in carrots, nuts, and raisins. In a separate bowl whisk together flours, baking powder and soda, salt, cinnamon, and allspice. Add wet mixture to dry and stir. Pour into lightly oiled and floured 9”x13” pan. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes. Cool and top with powdered sugar or frosting.
Graceful Grief – Part 2
Further Shore was founded in 2005 with the mission to provide resources and education for living well and dying with dignity. Our work is primarily supportive of people faced with medical and/or ontological end-of-life concerns. Grief is an abiding theme when one is faced with catastrophic illness, the dying process, and the eventuality of death. We normally think of grief as a response to the death of a loved one, but it is also a universal and natural response to losing the things that define, sustain, or bring comfort to our lives (i.e. relationships, health, job, financial or legal well-being, safety, self-esteem, dreams, goals, a sense of agency or freedom). This section of the newsletter explores the ways grief can influence life’s relationships, experiences, and choices and to reveal grace and resilience within the more challenging aspects grieving. The first topic in the series, Anticipatory Grief, was featured in the Imbolc newsletter. This season our focus is on Denial. Grab your journal or sit down with a friend to talk about these concepts. See below for details about Graceful Grief, a virtual companion program to this writing.
Introducing DABDA ~ The acronym, “DABDA” references five stages of grief made famous by the renowned Swiss-American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. She authored the 1969 book, On Death and Dying to introduce a theory suggesting that terminally ill patients experience a series of emotions that include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance (DABDA). The stages are a framework to describe the grief that these patients feel, and coping strategies they might use when faced with pending death. Once the stages “went public” they were often thought to be about the grief and coping strategies that loss survivors experience. She agreed with that assessment and later wrote that while the DABDA stages describe ways that patients cope with serious illness and pending death, they are also applicable to personal loss of anykind. Dr. Kübler-Ross also clarified that the stages did not represent the way people might or should grieve. They are not meant as a linear or predictable progression; in fact, they are very unpredictable and unique to each situation. The Graceful Grief workshop series explores each of the five DABDA stages beginning with denial.
Denial Signs and Symptoms
- In grief, denial is the act of consciously or unconsciously pretending, disbelieving, or denying the reality of loss.
- Denial is a normal part of grief that can be difficult to detect, given that it involves thinking, feeling, or believing that the loss is not real, cannot happen, or has not happened.
- Numerous fears can spark denial, including but not limited to fear of loss; fear of the uncertain future after loss; fear of physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual anguish/suffering; fear of death or the afterlife.
- Forgetting that loss may occur (as in anticipatory grief) or has already occurred (as with grief after loss).
- Expecting or believing that things can “be what they were like before” (the loss occurred)
- Being in shock, feeling numb, unemotional, or disoriented; unable to take care of daily activities, self-care, or make future plans
- Staying perpetually busy or distracted with anything and everything to avoid facing the loss
- Excessive sleep, work, alcohol, media binging, gaming, or substance abuse to distract or escape the loss or the associated new reality
- Entirely rejecting loss and the subsequent new reality
- Displaying lack of empathy, avoiding, criticizing, or minimizing the feelings of those who do acknowledge and/or accept the loss reality; not allowing others to grieve.
Coping and Healing
- After loss, denial can last for days, weeks, or months. Over time, denial will gradually shift to awareness of the new reality, along with other grief-related feelings.
- Becoming aware of grief denial may feel like waking up after dreaming.
- Acknowledging grief denial is empowering, freeing, and can represent a first step in a new level of self-awareness, self-care, and healthy boundaries.
- Facing the new reality may bring some discomfort and/or feelings of sorrow, embarrassment, anger, guilt, regret, or shame. It can also bring feelings of peace, contentment, excitement, or joy.
- During the process of waking up to the new reality, it can be useful to seek support from others in family or friend circles, hospice, or counseling support services.
- When realizing that denial is beginning to shift into acceptance of a new reality engage in healing, grounding activities to assist in moving forward. Massage, Reiki, yoga, mindfully breathing, walking, or singing, are some examples of activities that are both grounding and healing.
- Record or repeat affirmations such as, I trust in the new reality this change is bringing.
- Consider an outward expression of mourning the loss (funeral, celebration of life, memorial, dedication of a monument, plaque, or other expression acknowledging the loss)
- Denial is not an ideal long-term coping strategy as it can lead to depression, anxiety, and/or complicated grief. Be mindful about intense and/or persistent feelings of isolation, loneliness, longing, risk-taking, self-destructive or thoughts that living life no longer matters. Those feelings can indicate a need for professional therapeutic support and/or medication. To reach the Suicide Hotline dial or text 988 is available 24/7/365 (conversations are free and confidential).
Finding Grace ~ There is grace in the practice of denial, and it is useful in the short term as a self-protective defense mechanism to utilize when loss doesn’t feel “real”. This stage of grief helps to reduce the immediacy of emotional pain, trauma, and suffering. It gives us time to adjust to possibilities that initially feel terrifying or unacceptable. Normally experienced quite soon after loss, denial offers the brain and central nervous system time to adjust to a new reality. When it happens, grief denial can offer solace and comfort, a reprieve from the overwhelming fears and feelings that accompany deep loss. While Dr. Kübler-Ross deemed the denial stage of grief as the “first” stage, it can occur any time before, during, or after loss. It may even occur while a patient is actively dying. You can read more about denial as a wellness practice on the ABC’s for Living Well blog.
Grief Denial Prompts ~ Am I using denial as a coping strategy for an anticipated loss or a loss that has already occurred? If so, what is the circumstance? Does the denial have something to do with fear? If so, what bolsters my courage to face those fears? Has denial become a long-term coping strategy? If so, is it putting my physical or mental health at risk? What other coping strategies might serve me better? Does it feel safe to move past denial and face the loss more fully? Do I need some form of additional support as I transition away from denial and into acceptance? If so, am I comfortable asking for assistance; who are my helpers and mentors for this? Is there something about this experience I’m grateful for, a gift or grace?
Graceful Grief – Session #2 Denial – this virtual program is open to those who are interested in deepening the grief experience to find more grace and peace. The workshop includes grief education, coping strategies, meditation, and dialogue for shared empathy and healing. This season’s topic is Denial. It will be held on Friday, April 17, 2026, from 3:00-4:30 p.m. (PDT/AZ) on the Zoom platform. Space limited to 10 participants on first come basis. Registration required by April 7, 2026, via emailing aleia@furthershore.org to secure your place. Freely offered; donations to Further Shore are appreciated.
Newsletter Sign Up ~ is now available on the website. This Mail Chimp service is open to anyone who wants to receive the Further Shore news via email. The news is generated 8 times a year with a focus on living well according to the seasons, tips for caregivers, and more. Your data will not be shared or made public. Thanks for reading!
On the Blog: The latest post in the Long Covid Series is Covid Confusion; “X” is for Crossing parts 1, 2, and 3 are available in the ABC’s for Living Well.
Quotes for Season: “In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” ~ Margaret Atwood, Canadian Poet
“Spring is the time of plans and projects.” ~ Leo Tolstoy, Author
“What a strange thing! to be alive beneath cherry blossoms.” ~ Kobayashi Issa, Poet
May all beings be safe, well, happy, and content.