Darkness and Light

Although the wheel is turning back toward longer days, we're in the heart of winter's darkness now. Despite the fact that winter arrives every year, I'm never quite ready for the 4:30 sunset. The dark, even more than cold or snow, is the hardest part of winter.

And then I drive through the neighborhoods. The beauty of the houses lit up for the season is such a welcome sight in the everlasting darkness - so much so that I can't bear to take them down after the Yule season. I don't decorate the outside of my house, mostly because I'm lazy and don't like ladders. Inside, though, I swap out colored lights for white ones, and leave them strung over the corner barrister bookcase and the windows in the front room and the library.

For most of human history, we didn't have the ability to light up the night. The hearth fire, candles, oil lamps - these were the weapons with which we fended off the darkness, and they are feeble things in the vast scope of the night. What would our ancestors make of this brightly-lit world?

One of my small Yule rituals is to turn everything off for a brief period. Television, lights, even the cable boxes and night lights. Turn everything off and just feel the darkness. It's a little frightening, to be honest. I'm always glad to turn on a lamp again.

On the other hand, there is no beauty like that of the stars on a clear night, and winter brings my favorite constellation: Orion, the hunter, so huge in the sky, so easily found. You've seen him. If you don't know him - look up, an hour or two before dawn. His left arm is marked by the red giant Betelgeuse; his right leg, the blue star Rigel.

(image linked from Pinterest - source link here)

The myth of Orion is Greek. There are differing accounts of his story, but the one I know best is where he, the great hunter, boasts that no beast on earth can best him - and, of course, such hubris is immediately punished. He is killed by a tiny scorpion. For this reason, he and Scorpio are never in the sky at the same time.

As the saying goes, I have loved the stars far too fondly to fear the night.

But I light the lamps.

Cold Moon

It seems this is the first full moon to fall on Christmas since 1977. Can't see it tonight, unfortunately. It's been cloudy for most of the night here in my corner of Colorado.

Interestingly, I moved from Florida to Colorado in 1977. I'd just turned six, so I don't remember it.

It snowed today, a relatively rare white Christmas. Only an inch or two, but it was welcome all the same - there's something about the crisp cold air and a soft falling snow that just makes the holiday feel more...authentic.

I grew up Catholic, but I've been Pagan for many years now, and no longer celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday. Nevertheless, the day holds a special place in my heart and memories, and I struggled for some years with the dilemma of whether or not I could continue to observe it. I've decided there's no reason why I can't embrace the turning of the wheel at Yule and still enjoy the spirit of goodwill of Christmas.

There's a thousand articles detailing all the ways Christmas was stolen from pagan traditions, etc., and I have no desire to beat that horse here. Rather, I'd like to think about what it means to observe traditions.

Yule  - the long dark night, followed by the promise of longer days - is one of my favorite days of the year. Near my house is a park with a lovely little square, marked by standing stones at the cardinal directions and the sunrise and sunsets of the solstices. The markers aren't perfectly aligned, but I appreciate the spirit of the thing. This is the philosophy I carry into much of my spirituality; the spirit in which a thing is intended.

The value of tradition is found in its connection to the past. Generation to generation, we pass on beliefs and behaviors with the intention of keeping our families connected across the span of time. It's a beautiful thing, mostly. It's the reason I still sing Christmas carols, even though I no longer believe in the stories they tell.

In my journey, I'm looking to create new traditions. I've been a haphazard practitioner of my faith up to now, and as we move into a new year, new resolutions, one of mine is to embrace spirituality on a daily basis. This blog is the beginning of that journey.

To be continued!