Brigid
The first of February is my amazing husband’s birthday! ❤
It is an auspicious day indeed, as it also is Imbolc for many pagans, or the feast of St Brigid (one of three patron saints of Ireland) for Catholics. I’ve been learning about Brigid recently (I was a religion major in college and never got over it) and find her absolutely fascinating; the different cultures that venerate her and what she represents.
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In pre-Christian celtic mythology, she is a goddess of poets (Brigid the bard), of healers, and of smiths- quite the diverse portfolio of patronages. She also represents the turning of the season, when winter slowly but surely begins to give way to spring- she represents a change, a turn from a more contemplative hibernation to a time of productivity.
She was such an important figure, that when Catholicism came to Ireland, they could not reject her but instead canonized a human version of her into sainthood, ensuring her continued worship in a way that was more palatable to the church. She is the patron saint of healing, poetry, smithing, livestock and dairy production, and performed miracles very similar to the pre-Christian mythology surrounding Brigid.
I love how she represents conflicting truths and multiple facets. Change from winter to spring, growth from death, and creation/growth as a means for healing. More and more, these are spheres I realize I feel most excited about exploring as well. One of the less-than-fun truths I learned after becoming sober was that I lacked a cohesive sense of identity because I never felt comfortable thinking about or fully delving into things that truly excited me. Brigid gives me strength to continue to seek.
Why do we limit ourselves to one lane as our primary passion? When someone asks what we “do”, we expect to be able to answer in a short few words, but why? Life is meant to be lived, to follow and grow in many paths and create a unique imprint on the world by the way those paths are synthesized. Some doctors’ practices are enhanced by their interest in music, a passion for writing, philosophy, and others by their patience and love of research. Medicine is a science AND art, but we currently clearly prioritize one and (I believe) neglect the other as less important. And science has not come up with a way to explain everything about the body or fix everything that goes wrong with the body, flawlessly. I hope to learn to become a better doctor by leaning into the ART side, the human spirit aspect, the connections a person has with nature, with other humans, and with their own mind.
This post has less of a point, and is more a reflection on a specific day. Even if this isn’t your religious inclination, I encourage you to learn about Brigid and incorporate aspects of her that inspire you into your life. In the next few days, I plan to honor her by planning my garden this year, writing, cleaning (ridding my physical and spiritual of things that are no longer useful for me) and reflecting on how to be a better human and healer.
