Yule – The Hermits' Rest

Solstice Weekend Day of Peace

The days are very short, and the windy, cloudy morning made it feel even darker today. I got to celebrate this day by having no agenda whatsoever. I took advantage of it with a mix of resting and enjoyable activities.

I took a lot of photos, including Apache and Spice blending into one mythical creature.

It was challenging listening to birds because the wind made it feel cold, though it was the warmest day of a warm December. It was also a challenge to photograph birds, because they were all elsewhere this morning (yesterday, when I was busy, they were standing in front of me, taunting.

I enjoyed this pretty doe, who made up for the hidden birds.

And of course I had to take more photos of Darryl, Connie, and friends. Everyone is getting along just fine. I did a lot of reading about turkeys today. I found out they do recognize humans, so we weren’t imagining that Connie recognized Heather yesterday. I also discovered their “beards” are modified feathers, not hairs, and only 10% of hen turkeys have them. Connie is special.

After a nice nap and some football (it put me to sleep), I went on a walk with the camera, looking for birds to photograph. I ended up taking a few horse and donkey pictures instead. Mabel was being especially regal.

I did have a bit of bird fun, as I tracked a little Kestrel as he hunted around our field. Of course, I mostly got photos of his butt. My luck.

It’s so rare to have an agenda-free day. It allowed me to reflect on this extended dark season, and to allow myself a little hope that the light starting to trickle in during this Yule season will be more than just the wheel of the year turning. I’m setting that intention!

It’s a long road towards civil and ethical society.

But hey, it was a peaceful day, and I did get to see at least a few birds!

The resident Great Blue Heron never disappoints.

Oh yes, Apache and I had a better ride today, but I don’t think he likes riding when it’s getting dark with no lighting.

Warmest Solstice Greetings

Last night, as the official solstice occurred, I went out and looked at the Jupiter and Saturn confluence (or whatever it’s called), humming “Star of Wonder, Star of Light” to myself. It was a welcome getaway from the people in the house once again discussing why they don’t like my stovetop (this is said with a laugh).

A doe in Illinois, not Texas. Photo from: *@castlemandesign via Twenty20*

The morning dawned frosty and silvery, with the sun practically rising in the south, it seemed to me. I was given the gift of watching a herd of deer bounding across one of the nearby fields, with the buck turning briefly to look at me. That’s enough to warm my heart for the rest of the day.

In my office, which is a bit of a mess while I await my new glass shelves, I lit all the available fake and real candles, and of course have a roaring fire in the fake fireplace. Sitting here in the darkened room gives me plenty of time to reflect on all that’s transpired since last Yule, when Lee and I were happily preparing for our supposedly solo trip to Bandera.

This evening, I plan to light all the candles in the house and pretend I have a Yule log in the fireplace (unless I can convince someone to light a fire). This year, especially, the longest night of the year provides time to finish mourning the losses in the past months and look for the glimmer of light that’s approaching. I’m glad there are now vaccines for essential workers.

Solstices Past

I haven’t done a memoir in a little while, so I’ll share how my family used to celebrate the solstice. It was a lot of fun when the boys were young. As they got old enough to understand, we explained to them what the winter solstice meant, and how it was celebrated in the past.

These are all the cheap fake candles that still work after a year.

We had a tradition of having a fire, lighting all the candles in the house (and I had lots back then, since the kids’ dad was not deathly opposed to scented candles), doing a little ceremony where we shared the best thing from the past year and the worst thing (these were often pretty funny), then selecting ONE present from under the Christmas tree to open before Christmas (we also celebrated Christmas!).

Should We Torture Plants with Lights?

It is the time of year when some of us go a little crazy with decorating for the various holidays involving bringing light to the darkness in some way or another (Christmas, Yule, Hannukah, and more). Seeing all those lights, candles and blow-up characters does life one’s spirits when driving home in the dark. (I admit, I’m actually more fond of lights and less fond of blow-up things, which look so sad during the day when they are deflated.)

Never thought I’d decorate an aloe plant.

This year, we’ve brought more light to the darkness than usual, thanks to our love of battery-powered lights and a gift of a lot of regular lights that my coworker no longer wanted.

After this photo, I also electrified Rudolph. We have so many lights.

We did put a few lights on the deck and door, but most of them are in plants, both outdoors and indoors. I even bought NEW plants to stick lights on (and I hope they will live a long time and decorate the house the rest of the year, too).