The Shortest Day Approaches
Rituals that have become my festive traditions.
Hello Creative Souls,
Welcome to my last post of 2023, I thought I’d leave you with my latest pondering about Jolabokaflod and the practices I have started to keep on the lead up to the winter solstice and Christmas. Routines and processes that have turned into traditions, so carry on reading and I’ll share one or two of my new customs with you.
The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper
So the shortest day came, and the year died,
And everywhere down the centuries of the snow-white world
Came people singing, dancing,
To drive the dark away.
They lighted candles in the winter trees;
They hung their homes with evergreen;
They burned beseeching fires all night long
To keep the year alive,
And when the new year’s sunshine blazed awake
They shouted, reveling.
Through all the frosty ages you can hear them
Echoing behind us—Listen!!
All the long echoes sing the same delight,
This shortest day,
As promise wakens in the sleeping land:
They carol, feast, give thanks,
And dearly love their friends,
And hope for peace.
And so do we, here, now,
This year and every year.
Welcome Yule!
Winter Solstice
We are fast approaching the winter solstice but what does that actually mean? According to The Royal Museums Greenwich, the word 'solstice' comes from the Latin 'solstitium', meaning 'Sun stands still', because the apparent movement of the sun’s path north or south stops before changing direction. At the winter solstice, the apparent position of the sun reaches its most southerly point against the background stars.
The actual moment of the solstice in 2023 will occur on Friday 22nd December at 3:27am GMTÂ in the UK, but most people concentrate on the whole solstice day, which has been recognised by holidays and festivals in many cultures around the world.
The shortest day lasts 7 hours 49 minutes and 42 seconds in London. This means that the length of the day during the winter solstice is 8 hours, 49 minutes shorter than the summer solstice. 1
The thought of having less daylight hours can be quite disheartening so it is important for me to mark the winter solstice with gratitude and thanks. I may not be feeling gratitude for less light but I make sure I am in control of what I can do in my life to uplift myself and in turn uplift others. I like to have my Christmas tree up early to enjoy the twinkly lights, candles are lit whilst I am writing or creating art and during the evenings, to give me a cosy glow where I am sitting. I like to have the routine of feeding the birds and checking their water each morning.
Many cultures celebrate the winter solstice and the most famous landmark I grew up being familiar with is Stonehenge and it’s mystical stone circle. A truly fascinating place that raises lots of questions for me, a place where the winter solstice has been revered for thousands of years by our ancestors.
Many people gather every year to witness the sun’s alignment with the stones. The stones were shaped and set up to frame at least two important events in the annual solar cycle – the midwinter sunset at the winter solstice and the midsummer sunrise at the summer solstice. 2
This year the winter solstice celebration can be viewed live on YouTube. There is a channel provided by English Heritage. See the link below.
Traditions that make winter magical
Puzzles:
Winter for me marks the time to get the festive puzzles out, I love nothing more than to have a Christmassy puzzle festooned on the kitchen table where visiting friends and family like to get involved. A kind friend made me a material calendar one year and every year like a sneaky Christmas elf, she fills each pocket with puzzle pieces. Every evening I grab a cup of tea and complete a section of the puzzle, so by the time Christmas Eve arrives I have completed a lovely festive picture. I cherish my hand sewn calendar and the kind hearted elf that fills it with puzzle pieces and sweets every year.
Wreath Making:
I have been on local wreath making workshops and have had a wonderful time learning new skills and meeting new people, but last year my friend and I decided that we had all the materials required to make our own wreaths and so that is what we did. We took Audrey out into the woods and foraged for items for our wreaths, finding pine cones, feathers, holly, ivy and old man’s beard. We only took what we needed and were very careful not to disturb any wildlife. We also managed to find lots of things in my garden, like dried teasels and dried hydrangea flower heads. The weather was glorious and we were able to work outside on the garden table. The sense of achievement at the end was a great feeling and we were so pleased with our wreaths that we decided that it had to be a new tradition and so this year, on another glorious winter’s day we rinsed and repeated. This time we were joined by another friend who had a wonderful time, it was lovely to be outside, listening to the birds, enjoying the warm winter sunshine, chatting, laughing and drinking tea and there may have been some sweet treats too.
Jolabokaflod:
I was introduced to this tradition a couple of years ago by two friends, being a book lover I didn’t take much convincing, but what is Jolabokaflod I hear you cry, well, roughly translated it means ‘the Christmas book flood’.
After researching this tradition I found out that the custom started during WWII once Iceland had gained its independence from Denmark in 1944. Paper was one of the few commodities not rationed during the war so the Icelanders shared their love of books. 3
During the festive season, presents are opened on Christmas Eve, the 24th December, traditionally everyone reads books that they have been gifted straight away, whilst indulging in the drinking of hot chocolate or alcohol free Christmas ale called Jolabland.
I love exchanging books every year with my ‘book flood friends’ and so I have decided to extend the tradition further and wrap pre-loved books from my shelf for my book club friends. I will deliver them on Christmas Eve and hope they too will enjoy the practice of Jolabokaflod, but shhhh, it’s a secret until then.
I hope you have enjoyed reading about my new winter traditions, I am sure you have some of your own which I would love for you to share in the comments. My new traditions are about sharing with others, it doesn’t have to cost much, in fact my books and puzzles have been passed around many others. It’s about spreading some joy and lifting each other’s spirits during a time which can be quite hard for many. So, in my final post for 2023, I would like to give thanks to all of my readers and subscribers, I hope I have brought you all some joy this year. Wishing you all a joyful Christmas and a bright and prosperous 2024!
Keep shining your lights bright and remember to stay naturally curious this Christmas..
Sending you all love and light,
Clare xx
www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/when-winter-solstice-shortest-day
https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/stonehenge/things-to-do/solstice/what-is-the-winter-solstice/
www.Jolabokaflod.org