Greeting the Light, Embracing the Dark

Sunday, December 21^st marks the Winter Solstice, known by some as Yule. The solstice is celebrated around the world in many different fashions; it is the longest day of the year, and therefore marks the returning of the light, as each day after brings with it a few more minutes of sunlight. For those people like me who live in chilly climates, this holiday symbolizes hope in the midst of the cold and dark. This is part of why many cultures bring pine trees and other greenery indoors, as a symbol of life in the season when most things are either dead or dormant.

The Winter Solstice is the official first day of winter, though, so even as we greet the reborn sun, we know that we must somehow make it through the next few months of relative darkness while we wait for spring to return. Many folks struggle with depression due to the lack of sunlight, or feel oppressed by the cold and the long nights.

As a Pagan, I have found ways to lessen my own winter blues by learning to go with the flow of the season. Winter in more primitive societies always meant slower, quieter days, usually huddled around the fire with family or tribe. People went to bed earlier because of the longer, darker nights, and rested up for the burst of energy required for planting in the spring. They told stories, played games, and worked on handcrafts like spinning, sewing, or woodcarving. (They probably did a lot of cuddling, too.)

In our modern society, we tend to ignore the turn of the Wheel of the Year, and try to maintain the same schedule and level of activity no matter what the season—but it usually doesn’t work very well, and we end up stressed and tired and blue. So while most of us can’t just stay home from work and sit by the fire, there are a few ways we can take a hint from our ancestors and embrace the winter darkness in ways that feed our souls and keep us mentally, physically, and spiritually healthier.

If you can, try going to bed earlier, or at least be quieter in the evenings; turn off the TV and read a book, put together a picture puzzle, or write in a journal. If you have children, spend some time together telling stories—take turns reading from a shared book, or each make up part of a continuing saga that you tell each night. Focus on imagination instead of electronics, putting away the phones and gizmos for a few hours and learning a new craft or practicing an old one. If you have an elder in the family who has a creative gift, now is the perfect time for them to share it with others. Cook together as a family, making hearty stews or soups, or kneading bread.

The dark times are meant to be more internal and less external, so you may wish to spend more time alone or with the family unit. But you can also “hunker down” with friends or family and do fun inside activities, like movie night with homemade popcorn, or playing board games or card games. Laughter makes even the darkest night brighter.

If you have someone to cuddle with—whether human or companion animal—there is no better way to spend a cold winter night. Throw in a good book and a mug of hot chocolate (or a glass of wine), and a cookie baked with love, and you’re all set, even if you have to wrap yourself in a fuzzy blanket and cuddle with that.

Don’t forget to take time to appreciate the stark beauty of the quiet season. I miss the green abundance of summer, but the white snow on the black branches and a brilliant red flash from a passing cardinal can always raise my spirits. Singing, playing or listening to music, or enjoying favorite movies and books can also help you get through the long dark hours.

Soon enough the Wheel will turn and the small green shoots will poke their cheerful heads up   through the ground, but until that time comes, try embracing the blessings of the darkness in all their quiet potential. Blessed solstice greetings to you all!  

Happy Winter Solstice!

A very blessed solstice to you all. The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year, with the longest night. We celebrate the return of the sun, which brings with it hope and renewal. May the returning light bring you all you want and need, and fill your days with joy.

Feline Friday: The Snuggle Up Version

It has been pretty cold here, for all that the calendar says winter doesn't start until tomorrow. (Ha!) So there has been a lot of snuggling going on here.

 Here's Samhain sitting on me as I took a bit of down time this weekend between frantic calls for rescheduling at the shop (the winter storm made it impossible for a lot of the artists who live further out to make it in for their shifts, so I had to  people in town who could cover...yes, I DO have a very glamorous job). Those are my legs underneath her :-)

 The three cats who are from the same family, Magic, Mystic, and their mom Minerva, in a rare moment all together. (That's Minerva in the middle--she snuggles with both her kids, but they don't snuggle with each other.)

 Minerva and Mystic late last night, making it look like you're seeing double.

 Two minutes later, when Mystic had clearly gotten tired of posing. (It looks like he is saying, "Stop annoying me and go to bed!")

NOT a cat, but I thought you'd like to see my Solstice altar. The evergreen swag has juniper berries on it (it's a few years old, made by a former artist at the shop, but still smells wonderful!). The fabulous Solstice goddess doll was also made by one of the artists, as were the clear star candle holders. The cute little sheep just wandered in from the cold...

Happy Friday! I hope you're staying warm, wherever you are.

Yule Dinner Party

Last night was the Blue Moon Circle yearly Yule Dinner Party--a time when we gather together with family and friends to celebrate the Winter Solstice. We don't do ritual (since not everyone who comes to this particular event is a Pagan). Instead, we just enjoy being together, exchanging gifts, playing games, and eating (a lot). Since we don't get to see each other as much as we used to, just being together is celebration enough. Well, and there was cake. LOTS of cake.

There's great entertainment (that's Sophia and Shaylee putting on a song and dance number).

Everyone chipped in on a Criket Cake gizmo that Robin REALLY wanted, and she was so overwhelmed with happiness when she opened the box, she burst into tears.

But the best part was just sitting around the dinner table together (in the dining room that is normally my writing area, in case you couldn't tell), with the group Yule log burning, and smiles on every face.

The Winter Solstice celebrates the return of the light, as the days begin to slowly get longer and brighter from that point onward. For me, I feel blessed to have the light of friendship in my life, no matter what time of year it is.

I hope that you get to spend time this season with the ones you love. Happy holidays from me, the kitties, and Blue Moon Circle.

Winter Musings

It is January, and in upstate New York, that means that winter is most definitely here, as these pictures will attest. Taken in my driveway, you can see the 7 inches of snow that have already fallen today. Look closer, and you can spot the flakes still falling. Snow. Winter. cold.

I will confess--I am not a winter person. My idea of a winter sport involves the couch, a good book, a cat or three, and a cup of hot chocolate. On the other hand, I have come to appreciate some of winter's blessings.

Before I started to practice Witchcraft, I used to get depressed every winter. But one of the tenets of The Craft is that we follow the cycles of the seasons; working with their energies instead of fighting against them. Going with the flow, as it were. And the winter season is one of quiet; more introspection than outward movement, thought instead of action.

As a writer, that translates to the perfect time to turn my energies inward and write, write, write. In the last few years, I have completed a book every January-March. It often takes me the rest of the year to complete another, when I am busy with garden, work, friends, and more. So while I may not ever learn to love the winter, I can happily sit at my computer, poised to work on my two current projects, and say: let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

Yule lore (and a recipe)

My apologies for not posting more often this month. It's December. I run a shop and make jewelry. 'Nuff said.

To make up for it, here is my take on Yule, the Winter Solstice, as found in my second book, EVERYDAY WITCH A TO Z. Today is Yule, so I hope you find this entertaining and educational. Happy holidays!

Yule is another name for the Winter Solstice, which falls every year on or around December 21st. Yule is the longest night of the year, and it marks the point on the Wheel of the Year when the Goddess gives birth to her son, the infant Sun God.
It is a time of great rejoicing and merriment and is often observed with family and friends. Pagans bring in evergreen trees and boughs to symbolize life in the midst of the death of winter, and exchange gifts to celebrate the holiday. They often sing traditional songs and feast on the hearty foods that will sustain them through the cold months ahead. Sometimes they hang up holly or mistletoe, which was sacred to the Druids.
Is any of this starting to sound strangely familiar?
If so, there is a good reason: the holiday currently known as Christmas was taken in great part from the pagan traditions of Yule. Even the colors, green and red, were taken from the colors of the berries and evergreens that early pagans used to decorate their homes, and if you listen to Christmas carols you will hear the words “Yuletide” or “Yule” pop up from time to time.
There is even a theory that the origins of Santa Claus can be traced back to the Oak King, who regains his throne at Yule from his counterpart the Holly King, who reigns from midsummer until midwinter. And that star on the top of the Christmas tree? Yup, you got it—that comes from the Witch’s five-pointed star that symbolizes the five elements.
So why did the Christians take so many pagan traditions and adopt them for their own? Historians theorize that when the Christians moved into Europe they tried to force the Pagans who already lived there to change their beliefs and practices to Christian ones. When that didn’t work (stubborn folk, us Pagans) they simply put a Christian twist to the holidays that were already celebrated in the region and called them their own. Pretty clever, when you think about it!
Yule was, at least in those days, a pretty raucous holiday, involving a great deal of drinking, carousing and dancing in the streets from home to home (the origins of caroling, by the way)—so much so that the Pilgrims made Christmas illegal for a while once they moved here. Big party poopers, those Pilgrims.
Yule is a little calmer these days, but still a time for celebration and joy. And one of the benefits of having so many traditions in common with those observed by our Christian friends is that we can use the Winter Solstice as an opportunity to merge our two worlds in shared gratitude and appreciation for the light of friendship and family on the darkest day of the year.

“Yule Wassail”
Wassail comes from a toast that translates as “be in good health” and can be made with (traditional) or without alcohol. It is usually made for Yule, but can be served at any of the harvest festival holidays.
Combine: A gallon of apple cider, a bottle of red wine, and a bunch of spices (usually in whole form, such as allspice berries, cinnamon sticks, cloves and a slice or two of ginger) with maple syrup to sweeten (how much you use will depend on personal taste). Warm on stovetop or in a crock-pot, top with slices of orange or an apple sliced crosswise to show its pentacle shape. Then shout “wassail!” and share with those you love.