Cold time..
Whether you love or loathe the festive spirit, Christmas will be unavoidable this month.
We often fall prey to the bright commercial glitzy beast Christmas has become and we don’t embrace the dark of December. The trees are bare; the weather can be frosty, with snow, gales, and biting cold; and it feels night comes in the afternoon. The zenith of this is the Winter Solstice, the day with the longest night and the Winter darkness is home to all manner of spirits and supernatural beings that have been wandering abroad since Samhain.
When the days are coldest and the nights are longest, we remind ourselves of brighter parts of our life with warmth, good company and good cheer.
Hetty Pegglers Tump
To the Vikings, the Winter Solstice was the time of the Wild Hunt. This was when Odin rode across the sky, accompanied by a convoy of the souls of the dead, gods, and elves. They called this time Yul the source of our Yuletide, with the Twelve Days of Christmas corresponding to the days of Yul. The image of a mystical bearded figure traversing the Winter night, accompanied by elves, was most likely an early inspiration for Father Christmas too.
The Vikings celebrated Yul because they recognised the days become longer after the Winter Solstice. They burnt logs to celebrate the return of the Sun, creating our modern tradition of Yule logs.
Celtic folklore portrayed Winter as ruled by Holly King. Together with the Oak King, they were said to be dual aspects of a woodland god. During the Summer Solstice, the Holly King slew his counterpart, and brought Winter to the land. The line “of all the trees in the wood/ the holly bears the crown”, in The Holly and the Ivy, may be a referenced to this legend. The Oak King was said to rise from his grave during the Solstice and slay the Holly King, ushering in Spring.
“Winter knows to hush, still and listen, so the soul can speak.”
The Solstices are always a standstill, a brief period of rest and darkness in the cycle of life and the wheel of the year. A time to look back and then to turn forward to a new growing season with the returning sun. Root energy has been strengthened, dreams explored and spiritual insights gained. On the crest of the new active solar energy, now is the time to let them manifest.
Time to reflect on your years journey, be proud of what you have learnt, experiences you’ve had, connections you’ve made. Gather friends, cook seasonal food, sweet treats, make winter cocktails and cherish good companionship for the gift it is.
Perhaps look for a winter wreath making workshop, as there is an old tradition of making wheels of evergreens, within which you anchor your hopes and dreams for the new cycle. Add some sparkly beads to catch the light and hold a wish.
