12/21/14

Holiday atmosphere had been dampened by several days of low clouds and rain. But 12/21 has nice symmetry, maybe a little mojo working. Sunday was the only day my kids and their kids could rendezvous for food and gift exchanges and we jumped on the opportunity. Had we costumes, one might have mistaken the table for a medieval feast. Grapes and cherries, cheese, veggies, chips and dip; chile substituted for roast pig and we used spoons. After gifts were opened we settled in for a board game that had everyone drawing cards to find out what kind of ridiculous act they had to perform in front of the others. We had to set ground rules about smart phone videos and what could be posted on Facebook. 

Back on 12/21/12, it was an altogether different celebration. In Dayton, Ohio, we celebrated a wedding. My oldest son Pete and my 2 now, going on 3 year daughter said their, ”I Do’s.” We got to talk on the phone with them last night as they marked their 2nd anniversary. We talked to our daughter/sister in Alaska as well. Her birthday, just a long week earlier was still fresh in our celebrating. 

When I got home the rain had let up but the patio was still wet. I gathered scrap wood from a barrel in the basement and built a mini-bonfire in the chiminea. Sitting in front of the fire, I watched flames leap out of the stack, sparks rising and disappearing in the dark. 12/21 is winter solstice; has been since they adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1582. Solstice must be the earliest, most enduring celebration in the history of human-kind. I love it. The longest night of the year signals longer days, more sunlight and the promise of warmer weather. The warmer weather takes a while, like 4 months but the promise is something you can hang onto. It will happen. From their cave-condos, our ancestors associated longer hours of daylight, even by a few minutes; before they knew what a minute was, with the return of warm weather. 

In Great Britain, Pagan Druids worshiped trees and burned logs in sacrifice on that longest night of the year. Out of that tradition came the Yule Log. Decorating trees and the Yule Log were later incorporated into Christian tradition, a way to help assimilate pagans into the new, Roman religion. So I sing, “Silent Night” and, “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” in keeping with the new. I also build a bonfire on the longest night, in keeping with the old.