One of the busiest time of the years for many families is the Winter months, because of the holidays. In our family we celebrate Yule, December 21, during this time we celebrate the returning of the Sun God that died during Samhain. The fertility Sun God joureyed to the underworld during Samhain, it was at this time that the ground was harsh and unable to yeild any crops. While the Goddess stayed strong and patiently mourned his death we also wait for him to return. He finally does return on Yule and we celebrate this in many different ways in the month of December. For the next 21 days we will be preparing to celebrate and honor the return of the Sun God and the defeat of the Oak King. I created a calendar with the kids As we countdown to yule on the 21st. Having your children create a calendar countdown and writing the things that you would like to do with them on it not only includes them, but helps them get excited for what's to come. Our 21 Day Yule Countdown:
We start by decorating the Yule tree, this tradition came from the Druids who would decorated evergreen trees in the wild to honor the return Sun God. Then the Pagan Scandanavions adapted this tradition by cutting the tree down and bringing it into our home then decorating it. So this year we decided to get a real tree and bring it in then decorate it. We are going to keep it until Imbolc, February 2 when we are going to burn it where we are going to be planting our garden for the upcoming harvest. We bring the tree into our home and bless the tree and give thanks for the spirit of the tree sacrfice. Earth, Air, Water and Fire We thank this Pine Spirit Earth, Air, Water and Fire We bless this Spirit and welcome it into our home Just like with a Christmas tree we also decorate it, but like the ancient Pagans we decorate it with natural ornaments. We make our own ornaments, garland, and we even use solar lights adorn it. Once Yule is over we then return the decorations to the Earth, giving thanks for the use of it.
Over the next 21 days we are going to chronicle our journey through pictures and insructions of how you can bring a little bit of magic into your home as you celebrate the holidays. Regardless of which holiday you are celebrating during the winter months its the activity of doing things together that really create memories during these times that will last a lifetime.
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12/10/2017 12:26:16 am
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As a mom of three boys who go to public school I started to notice that some things were not being taught in detail so I decided to create lessons for them. Many of these lessons cover science, history and of information about Paganism. I share crafts for the all different holidays and cultures as ways that they can learn and have fun at the same time.
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