Erin FoxTo the Japanese, the cherry blossom has a spiritual importance
From the end of April to the middle of May, we are blessed with the sight of cherry blossom trees on almost every street corner. Sadly, the blossoms have a very fleeting life and by mid-May, the branches are nearly bare and the roads are scattered with pink and white confetti.
The cherry blossom is the national emblem of Japan. To the Japanese, the cherry blossom has a spiritual importance, representing the fragility and the beauty of life. Their time is short yet they bloom in brilliant force, serving as a reminder that while life is beautiful, it can also be tragically short.
The country even has a cherry blossom festival which has been copied worldwide. In Ireland, we associate the cherry blossom with Our Lady, as it is one of the many blossoms used to crown her head in May.
If you want to enjoy the blossoms for a little longer than a few weeks, you can do so by making your own cherry blossom ësnowí globe.
You will need: One jam jar and lid or a large glass bowl, two small branches or twigs from a cherry blossom tree, scissors, glue, brown play dough, pink tissue/crepe paper or dried pressed cherry blossom petals.
Tear up strips of pink tissue paper, and scrunch them very slightly. Stick these all over the cherry blossom twigs with glue and leave to dry.
Once the glue has dried, push the bottom of the twigs in to the play dough and secure in place using glue, to the inside of the jam jar lid. Leave to dry for several hours or overnight. Shred the rest of the pink tissue paper into pieces so you have what resembles tiny confetti. You can also do this using scissors.
Place the pink confetti petals inside the jam jar. Once the glue has dried and the twigs are firmly in place on the lid, gently screw this on top of the jam jar. Tip the jam jar over so the mini blossom trees are facing the right way up.
Gently shake up and down to see the blossoms scatter everywhere. You can also make this using real blossoms. Gather some petals and press them for a week before using them.
Next year, place a miniature statue of Mary inside the blossom globe for the whole month of May.