Hi First name / friend,

 

Welcome to our February Imbolc Nature Update.

 

🍂 Already joined us before? Scroll down to see our seasonal observations and details of our recent and upcoming sessions, including seasonal dates and special themed walks.

 

🌿 Curious to learn more about Forest Bathing? Discover the science, the benefits, and how our sessions work here: Explore Forest Bathing with us

 

If you are not already a subscriber and would like to be, sign up here. 

❄️ From Midwinter Stillness to Imbolc’s First Stirring 🌱

A threshold moment between rest and renewal…

🌳 The land is still largely unclothed, yet no longer dormant. Bare branches trace delicate calligraphy against winter skies, while evergreens remind us of resilience and continue to anchor the landscape—beaded with frost, lichen and the silvery lacework of spider webs. Beneath the surface, sap is beginning to rise. Imbolc marks this subtle turning: the first whisper of movement after winter’s deep pause.

🥕 The foods of the season remain simple and sustaining—roots, nuts, greens and stored fruits offering warmth and nourishment as the body gently recalibrates. Soups and stews continue to comfort, yet there is often a quiet instinct to lighten, to prepare for what comes next. The earth is still feeding us, but in a way that encourages discernment and care.

🦌 Wildlife remains largely inward-focused, though signs of change are unmistakable. Birds grow more vocal, daylight lingers, and the lengthening mornings invite us outdoors once more. Even a brief winter walk can lift the spirits—natural light supporting circadian rhythms, while crisp air sharpens the senses and clears the mind.

🌲 Our Imbolc-season Forest Bathing sessions honour this gentle re-awakening. They offer a held, unhurried space to listen—to the land, to the body, and to the quiet intentions forming within—bridging winter’s wisdom with the promise of new growth ahead.

🌕 Celtic Wheel of the Year 🌿

The Celtic Wheel of the Year encourages us to connect with nature more deeply, and emphasises the importance of the cycles of the natural world and its rhythms in daily life.

✨ Imbolc – From Midwinter Depths to the First Signs of Renewal ❄️🌱

December and January carry the energy of closure and inwardness. December, from decem—Latin for “ten”—was once the tenth month of the Roman calendar and still holds a feeling of completion: the year drawing in its final breath before the Wheel turns once more.

🌌 The Winter Solstice on 21st December marked the darkest night and the return of the light—celebrated as Yule by Celtic peoples and as Sol Invictus by the Romans. January, named for Janus, the two-faced god of thresholds and doorways, asks us to look back with honesty and forward with intention, standing consciously between what has been and what is becoming.

🕯️ By Imbolc, the quality of the season subtly shifts. Candles and hearth fires still warm against winter’s chill, yet there is a growing sense of anticipation. Traditions such as Burns Night on 25th January remind us of the enduring importance of community, storytelling and shared warmth at this turning point of the year.
🔥 Imbolc is traditionally associated with the Celtic Goddess Brigid (Bride) — a figure of sacred fire, healing and inspiration, whose energy reflects this gentle shift from winter’s depth towards renewal and possibility.

🦉 Imbolc invites a gentler form of inward listening. Not the deep hibernation of midwinter, but a quiet readiness—an attunement to lengthening days, stirring life beneath frozen ground, and the first preparations for growth. It is a time to tend inner embers, clarify intentions, and trust that renewal is already underway, even if it cannot yet be fully seen.

🌑 Re-imagining the Ogham Tree Calendar for the New Moon Cycle

For 2026, we are aligning the Ogham Tree Calendar with the first New Moon after the Winter Solstice, rather than fixed Gregorian dates. This approach feels far more intuitive: the Solstice marks the point of deepest stillness, while the first New Moon that follows signals the energetic rebirth of the natural year. As lunar cycles underpin many indigenous and earth-based calendars, this shift brings the Ogham sequence into closer harmony with the living rhythms of the land.

In this re-imagined cycle, the December New Moon falls on 20th December, almost precisely at the Solstice threshold, marking the completion of the Elder Moon and the close of the old year. From here, the energy moves through Birch, the tree of beginnings and purification, up until 18th January, and then transitions into Rowan, guardian of thresholds, protection and emerging vitality.

This gentle movement over winter from Birch into Rowan then Ash mirrors the season perfectly: from initial rebirth into strengthening light, from fragile beginnings into growing clarity and resilience, then on into expanding energies.

Begins: Saturday 18th January at 19:52
Ends: Monday 17th February at 12:01 (New Moon)
The Rowan Moon offers protection, insight and purposeful direction.
Long honoured as a guardian tree at thresholds, rowan strengthens intuition and helps refine vision. As we move through late winter and towards the earliest hints of spring, this moon encourages discernment, spiritual focus and weaving intentions with greater precision. It is a time for aligning plans with inner truth.

Begins: Tuesday 17th February at 12:01 (New Moon & Annular Solar Eclipse)
Ends: Thursday 19th March at 01:23

The Ash Moon brings expansion, connection and the awakening of inner pathways. Traditionally associated with the World Tree, Ash links earth, sky and the unseen realms, supporting vision, learning and spiritual growth. Beginning with a New Moon accompanied by an annular solar eclipse, this lunar phase carries a heightened sense of recalibration and realignment. It invites us to broaden perspective, strengthen energetic boundaries, and allow new insights to emerge as light steadily increases.

🌌 Night Sky & Lunar Events: Thresholds of Light and Shadow 🌑✨

February’s skies are quieter in terms of meteor activity, yet deeply potent in their symbolism. Rather than spectacle, this month offers moments of alignment and recalibration—inviting us to attune to subtle shifts rather than outward display.

🌕 Full Moon – Sunday 1st February at 22:09
The Rowan Snow Moon rises at Imbolc, illuminating the turning point between winter’s depth and the first stirrings of renewal. Traditionally associated with protection, insight and clarity, this Full Moon supports inner discernment and the strengthening of intentions seeded earlier in the season. Joanna's online Full Moon meditation is 7.30-9.30 pm.

🌑 New Moon – Tuesday 17th February at 12:01
This New Moon marks the beginning of the Ash Moon and is accompanied by an annular solar eclipse, a powerful celestial threshold. Eclipses have long been regarded as moments of reset and realignment, when old patterns fall away and new pathways quietly open. While not visible from the UK, the energetic influence of the eclipse is still felt—inviting reflection, recalibration and a widening of perspective.

🌌 With no major meteor showers gracing February’s skies, the emphasis returns to stillness and observation. Clear winter nights continue to offer crisp views of familiar constellations, while lengthening days subtly signal the gradual return of light.

Together, these February skies echo Imbolc’s deeper message: not sudden change, but gentle awakening—where insight grows quietly, and the future begins to take shape beneath the surface.

🦢 While in Mexico in December-January, Katie often spotted small, scurrying wading birds along the Yucatán coast, recalling similar sightings in the UK.

“I found their movements fascinating and hopeful they make you smile too. As a photo doesn’t do them justice, watch the 30-second video in the link. I was unsure if they were Dunlins or Sanderlings, but the key trait of sanderlings is their synchronized movements with waves as they forage for invertebrates, adapting to winter habitats in Europe and North America."

Sanderling (Calidris alba) represents adaptability, freedom, and the joy of living in the moment.

🌙 Natural Rhythms: Their communal behaviour reflects the importance of embracing Nature's rhythms to navigate life's currents with ease.

🤍 Community and Connection: Sanderling flocks highlight the strength of community and collective movement—listening, adapting, and allowing leadership to flow.

🪶 Lightness of Being: Observing their light movements invites us to simplify—let go of excess and focus on what sustains us.

🌬️ Liminal Messenger: Living between land and sea, sanderlings remind us to embrace transitions and find comfort in the in-between.

Ultimately, sanderlings teach us to trust the rhythm, travel lightly and remember our role in the greater pattern of life.

🌿 Immerse Yourself in Woodland Tranquillity 🌿

 

Hunter Delves, Community Engagement and Fundraising Manager at Harry Edwards, kindly created this lovely 36 second video to demonstrate the concepts of Forest Bathing at Harry Edwards, see the video on YouTube here.

 

Join us for a transformative Forest Bathing session in the stunning private semi-ancient woodland at Harry Edwards Foundation, nestled deep in the natural beauty of the Surrey Hills. This guided nature experience is based on the Japanese practice of Shinrin-Yoku, designed to help you slow down, engage your senses, and reconnect with the natural world in all its seasonal beauty.

 

Please note that our Saturday dates now start at 11.30.  This follows a request to faciliate those who wish to do Qigong with Sue Llewellyn at the same venue 10-11, and to meet with us by 11.20am. To book Qigong and browse other onsite events go the Harry Edwards Website.

 

Led by experienced guides Joanna Bristow-Watkins and Katie Robinson, we will take you on a mindful, sensory journey through the woodland. Feel the changes in the air, observe the seasonal colours, inhale the fresh, earthy scents, and listen to the gentle sounds of nature. As the session unfolds, you’ll deepen your connection through:

🌲 Guided Sensory Exploration – Engaging with nature through sight, touch, sound, and smell.
🌳 A ‘Treelaxation’ Nature Meditation – A deeply restorative practice beneath the trees.
🍃 Woodland Tea Ceremony – A soothing moment to close the experience.

 

📅 Upcoming Public Sessions:
📍 Harry Edwards Foundation, Surrey Hills
⏳ Duration: 3 hours (2.5 hours Dec–Feb)
💷 Cost: £39.77

🗓 Forthcoming Dates:

📢 IMPORTANT: Booking Within 48 Hours?
Please text 07930 414525 before booking to confirm availability. Book any of the above public sessions at the Harmony Shop

Wokingham Forest Bathing Session

🌿 Monthly events at California Country Park, Wokingham, RG40 4HU 

 

🌲In collaboration with The Forest Bathing Institute and Wokingham Countryside, we now have a forest bathing event booked most months for 2.5 hours. This route takes a maximum of 12 people, and is a feast for our eyes and noses, as nature's scents increase in the damp weather. Do come and join us if this is not too far from you.

🌲This location holds real variety, and while we start and end in woodland, we wander by a lake, heathland, open fields and a boardwalk area reminiscent of a mangrove swamp, each with its own characteristics and sensory charm. 
🌲You will need to book this event directly through Wokingham Countryside bookings, from a range of other events: Book here

 

📅 Upcoming Public Sessions | 10.30am –1pm | £36: 

 Our Other venues

We also arrange private bookings and/or corporate sessions at a selection of locations in the Surrey Hills (Shere, Bramley, Guildford, Woking & Tadworth) and London (SW20, SW14, NW3).  Contact us for details on katieandjo@harmonyinnature.uk

Through Harmony Healing, Joanna offers a variety of online esoteric and energy healing courses, including online and in-person self-empowerment courses, intuitive readings and 1-2-1 energy healing sessions. Her Violet Flame of Amenti Course starts online 7.30-9.30pm on Thursday 18th December.

 

Joanna also hosts monthly Full Moon Meditations online from 7.30-9.30pm (UK time) and produces a monthly Celestial Forecast, which includes insights on Moon Phases, Asteroid Showers, and Ancient & Modern Festivals, subscribe here.

 

Katie offers intuitive health mentoring and 1:1 places for Nurtured by Nature One-day Reset Retreats (Facebook Link, or message Katie without obligation for details). These retreats are designed for those needing a complete mind and body reset, away from their usual work and routines. Tailored to your needs, they include a selection from nutrition, breathing awareness, mindful movement, sounding or chanting, essential oils, ‘de-chemicalising’ your lifestyle, natural first aid, Reiki, and sensory nature connection through Forest Bathing. You will take away tips to transmute stress into calm.

 

The full day retreat is £366, with half days, or for 2-3 people, available on request. To discuss your ideal retreat, message Katie directly on 07596 830910.

 

 

mob. 07930 414525 Jo
mob. 07596 830910 Katie