Happy Holidays

No matter what you celebrate, it’s that time of year again! The time of giving gifts, spending time with family, and giving thanks for the ability to do both. My husband and I will be taking a brief trip across the province to visit family for the holidays, so the blog will be on Hiatus for two weeks, as my time and focus will be elsewhere (as it should be). Regular content resumes January 7th, but look for something special on New Year’s Day!

In the mean time, here are some fun facts about Yule; the primary holiday I celebrate at this time of year:

*Yule lasts for twelve days (usually beginning on the Winter Solstice and ending on New Years Day). In fact the twelve Days of Christmas are the twelve Days of Yule.

*Yule is the celebration of the re-birth of the Sun God, who died at Samhain (Halloween).

*The Christian celebration of Jesus’s birth (Christmas) was placed at the same time as the pagan winter solstice festival, when Emperor Constantine of Rome converted to Christianity, in order to encourage the pagans to celebrate the holiday (they were already celebrating the birth of god at the time)

*Several of today’s Christmas traditions carry over from Yule, including Christmas trees. Pagans used to take evergreen trees into their houses for the winter months, believing they held special properties due to their ability to stay green all year round. They would light candles in the trees during their winter rituals, hoping the lights would attract Faeries to attend said rituals.

*The tradition of the Yule log has also survived. The original idea of the Yule log was to summon the sun back at the end of the longest day of the year. Sometimes these bon fires would burn for twelve days. Afterward, ashes from the old fire would be saved for the next year and sprinkled on the fire as it was lit the next year. So that each new fire was born out of the old fire (as the Sun God is reborn of himself, like a phoenix rising out of the ashes of its own body).

Joyous blessings no matter what you celebrate! May your days be filled with love and light, and your nights be full of sweet dreams!

See you all in the new year!