As a child growing up in the Upper Midwest, one of the markers of Spring’s arrival was the first sighting of a robin. It made her a keeper of thresholds, a marker of passages, a blazer of seasonal trails. Even where I live now, I’ve continued to watch, even if only subconsciously, for Robin’s appearance, as though her presence somehow confirms that, despite the unsettled nature of the season’s weather, Spring really is here.
And that means that Summer is around the corner.
Climate change, of course, upends all seasonal yardsticks anymore. Last year, robins returned at the end of Summer and stayed well into our unseasonably warm and mild Autumn, departing finally on the threshold of Winter (at least, “Winter” by the calendar’s reckoning).
So despite Spring’s clear arrival here, I am not confident, on this Easter Sunday, that I will see Robin here anytime soon. Certainly, there is no chance of seeing what, to me, are the real “Easter eggs” — delicate pale-blue robin’s eggs, infused with the tiniest hint of spring green, decorated with the subtlest of earthy-toned speckles.
Oh, I know; dyed white chicken eggs are what people mean by “Easter eggs.” And we have chicken eggs in abundance, courtesy of our dozen productive hens, although none are white: All our chickens lay eggs in varying shades of delicate rosy brown, from palest peach to warm deep tan, although some are occasionally decorated with darker speckles. I won’t be coloring any today, although I’ll make a few herbed deviled eggs to go with dinner.
But for me, the real Easter eggs have always been the ones that appear organically, naturally hued: robin’s eggs.
The color of the pale Spring sky.
The color of the most classic of Skystones, the turquoise that is inherent in the culture and art and history and traditions of this place.
Fused together, the imagery of the egg of an indigenous bird, expressed in a gift of the earth indigenous to the area and its people . . . it becomes symbolic of something much greater, of history and tradition midwifing all of the hope and promise of the season into a tangible expression of life itself.
The earrings shown above are, to me, gemstone robin’s eggs. Wings created them in conjunction with two other pieces, a pair of complementary pairs designed to coordinate with a necklace. The themes that manifested through all three were themes of water, unsurprising given the story of the Skystone itself. And, indeed, the other pair of earrings would perhaps have been a better choice for today to continue this week’s other themes, another pair of delicate robin’s eggs accented by a starburst (or cloudburst, depending on one’s immediate perspective) — but for the fact that they sold early on. The necklace sold, too, to a friend who is really family, and who doesn’t wear earrings. And so, the one item remaining in this collection in miniature is one that feels, to me, especially suited to this Easter day, and yet embodies, in its own way, the same themes of thresholds and passages that we’ve been exploring this week. From the pair’s description in the Earrings Gallery:
The earthy fire of hematite warms these large smooth drops of the Skystone, fallen rain solidified into another precious form. The stones are set into sterling silver bezels hand-stamped on the reverse in flowing, feminine designs reminiscent of traditional pottery and basketry patterns, then suspended from hand-made sterling silver wires. Earrings hang 1-5/16″ below wires (dimensions approximate). Reverse shown below.
Sterling silver; natural blue turquoise
$425 + shipping, handling, and insurance
Earrings coordinate with A Little Jar of Rain necklace and Cloudburst earrings.
The imagery inherent in these marks other thresholds: between sky and soil; between fire and water; between water and life. That they do so in the color and shape and form and image of something sheltering of nascent life, of something so symbolic of the yearly renewal of life itself, makes them the perfect choice to bring Wings’s art into the space that is this day.
And for me, their image carries with it memories of childhood, of Easters and Springs long past, when robin’s eggs were magic.
We wish all of our readers, clients, friends, and family who celebrate Easter and Passover all the blessings of the days and their traditions; for those who don’t mark it, we wish you a blessed and beautiful day and season.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2015; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owners.
