Why You Should Trip on Leap Day

February 29th pops up just regularly enough to remind us it’s a *thing*. Elusive and mysterious, sometimes we forget it all together. And, although you could just dismiss it as another day like any other, why not stop and cherish those extra hours, because — well — you earned them!

A Leap Day is truly the gift of time; a liminal space, which can be seen as a moment to step outside of the hustle of the day-to-day and reflect. We can imagine this day as a portal, rather like a psychedelic trip, taking us out of the mundane, and showing us new perspectives.

A Day ‘Between Realms’

That is why we suggest you look at Leap Day as a chance to take an actual leap, a plunge, and ask yourself what you really want from those ‘regular’ days that make up the rest of the year. Magic mushrooms are often used as a tool with which to explore our inner worlds. They themselves, like a Leap Day, create a fleeting space for us to get deep in between realms. This is why, this Leap Day, we suggest you use this ‘borrowed’ time to take a psychedelic trip, and rebalance for the rest of the year.

Why Do We Have Leap Days?

But how did this extra day come to be? Well, as you may know, a year is not quite the tidy 365 days it purports to be. It is actually 365 and ¼ days. No biggie, you might say. But if we didn’t add up those quarters every 4 years to make a Leap Day, within 100 years, we would lose 24 days! That’s basically a month. It would mess everything up, truly. It’s hard enough to remember what day it is in the first place!

And sure, you may say, well, time is an illusiont. But even the Ancient Egyptians were aware that this extra quarter day made a difference. It’s not just about knowing whether it’s March 15th, or July 31st, or November 3rd, it’s about being able to track the seasons, the equinoxes and solstices, and keeping in sync with the Earth as she spins.

(Also, a cute fact: those born on Leap Day are known as ‘Leaplings’!)

A Chance to Realign

So, like a magic door, Leap Day is only sometimes there. The more witchy amongst us might suggest that like Samhain, or Beltane, it is a time when the veil between worlds is thinner. We use this day to realign ourselves with the turning of the world and the seasons — literally. This makes it a perfect time to realign spiritually, too.

Tips for Trips on Leap Day:

Set your intentions: Leap Day is a bonus day out of time. Use it to reflect what you want to achieve in your life. What do you want from your psychedelic experience? Do you want to make sense of your career ambitions? Understand your relationship dynamics? Recognize your love for yourself? Confront issues that have been dragging you down? Write it down and keep it near.
Reflect on the past 4 years: what has happened since the last Leap Day? What have you cherished, and what would you like to change?
Think about where you want to be 4 years into the future: where will you be on your next bonus day?
Leave your day-to-day worries at the door: this is an extra day to truly focus on yourself.

Other leap day traditions to chuckle at while your shroom tea brews:

‘Ladies Privilege’

In the UK and Ireland the 29th of February is traditionally when it was ‘OK’ for women to propose marriage to men. Of course, this now seems greatly outdated, but still the novelty persists — in the UK 52% of women who want to propose to their partners say they would do it on Leap Day (this is in comparison to 25% on Valentine’s Day).

It is said that this tradition started in 5th century Ireland, when Saint Brigid complained to Saint Patrick that women had to wait too long for a proposal. They agreed that women would be able to propose every four years, with Leap Day being the only day freaky enough for such a thing to occur…

‘Ladies Privilege’ Pt. 2

The ‘Part 2’ of Ladies Privilege, also known as Bachelor’s Day is a doozy. Historically, if the marriage proposal was refused by the man, he would not be let off the hook so easily. The refusee would be expected to buy a gift for the woman as penance. Traditionally, this would be a silk gown, fur coat, or gloves. Other records suggest that the man would be expected to perform a juggling act on Easter Sunday. Y’know, normal stuff.

A Bad Omen?

On the flip-side, some cultures believe Leap Day to be unlucky. In Greece it is said to be a bad omen to get married during a Leap Year, and especially on Leap Day itself. Apparently divorce is guaranteed… 😣

In Scotland, Leap Years are supposedly bad luck for farmers, enshrined by the phrase “Leap year was never a good sheep year.” In Germany a saying goes; “Schaltjahr gleich Kaltjahr.” Basically: leap year will be a cold year.

Raise a Glass

Ultimately, Leap Day is a time to celebrate. And, appropriately, there is a Leap Year Cocktail for you to toast it with. Invented in 1928 by Harry Craddock, a bartender at The Savoy in London, it consists of Grand Marnier, sweet vermouth, gin and a dash of lemon juice.

So, is that shroom tea ready? Great. This Leap Day, lets trip too 😜