Shay's Rune

I am really asking myself that question. There are still too many cloudy, or partially cloudy days to sometimes tell, but on the days where the sky is clear.....ah yes, I can definitely see and experience sunset after 5pm, and I relish in it. But the fact too that I'm seeing some trees and bushes with little "budlets" on them, even though I know full and well it's too early for them, fills me with the hope that Spring is truly on its way and the sunlight is gaining ground. In all honesty, we're only half way thru the winter......and, admittedly, it has been a mild one, so I have been out and about locally, even during the dark time. That being said,  I am really enjoying the longer days. That ol sun just  looks and feels soon nice! Imbolc is a Celtic feast referring to "ewe's milk", for this is a time when most livestock such as sheep and goats start lactating again in preparation for spring births. The time of milk means that dairy foods like but...

This coming weekend, December 21st to be precise, is the Winter Solstice, at least here in the Northern Hemisphere.  Since the Summer solstice in June, the days have been shortening a bit each day,  and it culminates in the longest night of the year, when the sun is at its most southerly point, and has likewise given us our shortest day of the year. And, despite the cold weather experienced, this marks the actual  first day of Winter. The final harvest of winter crops and thinning of the herds and flocks yield a bounty that must last throughout the cold winter months ahead, but first a celebration for the abundance. For the Norse and Germanic peoples, this was a time of merry-making, feasting and much revelry before the bitter cold kept people indoors and hunkering down for warmth for the next few months.  The Celtic peoples saw this as the battle between the dark Holly king, who has reigned since summer, and the Oak king, who now re-asserts his dominance with the ...