By Scott A. Yeager for GANT News
In early summer, love blossoms with the ease at which the West Branch of the Susquehanna flows. Warm days and cool nights inspire many people to shed the final vestiges of their Winter shell.
Faces brighten, slender threads of campfire smoke begin to fill the evening air and eyesight sharpens for those in search of a companion.
In the Ancient Greek tradition, Aphrodite was the Goddess of Love. Her power was among the most respected and feared by all other gods – even her father Zeus – for no force known to mortal or immortal could inspire conflict or foster peace like her.
It is love that Aphrodite is best known for inspiring in others. Wherever she walked upon the Earth, Aphrodite left gifts for mortals to discover.
Even in the most remote and wild lands, people can follow in Aphrodite’s footsteps and experience her gifts.
In early summer, the Pennsylvania Wilds begin to reveal the gifts left to us by the goddess.
To fully appreciate Aphrodite’s gifts in the Pennsylvania Wilds, you must not travel alone. To succeed, you must be accompanied by one or more mortals that you love or aspire to love.
In the forests of our region, seek a place of both sun and shade; for like love, Aphrodite’s gift will bring a balance between the darkness and the light in your life.
Near the forest floor, you must sharpen your gaze look for Aphrodite’s hand; it will be colored in red, white and gold – representing love, purity and honesty respectively.
As legend has it, the columbine flowers that dance among the ferns in the Pennsylvania Wilds are the hands of the Goddess Aphrodite.
They are her great gift to mortals like us. The five fingers or petals of the columbine flower represent the fingers of Aphrodite’s hand; you should only grasp it if your intentions are pure of heart.
Each petal represents a virtue that is important to the Goddess and to her power: love, beauty, passion, pleasure and sharing.
Master an appreciation for these virtues with someone special to you, and your world will seldom hold the same worth to you. Love is a transformational experience, a powerful form of evolution.
The gift of Aphrodite teaches us one final lesson. The columbine flower is sweet and edible; however, it’s stem, leaves and root are very toxic to mortals.
Like any good gift from a benevolent immortal, the columbine flower teaches us to be mindful with regard to love and to Aphrodite’s other virtues.
Taken too far, any great strength can quickly attribute to our demise. Balance is the key, always seek a balance in your relationships and in yourself.
The Pennsylvania Wilds are an ideal place to reconnect with nature, with the gifts of Aphrodite, and with that balance so many of us seek.
If your pursuit this summer is for love and happiness, all you need do is seek the hand of the goddess.
