Winter Soltice

The first big snowfall of the season came a couple of days before the winter solstice; but, for me, the snow marked the beginning of the Christmas/Winter season. I’m off work now until the end of the year, but two days ago I was wishing my holidays started slightly earlier: it took me three hours to get home, and that was after a half-hour spent digging my car out of the snow bank created by a plough. After a snow dump of 15 cm, it rained, which caused very icy conditions, especially in heavy-traffic areas.

I must admit, a snow-ladened landscape is incredibly stunning, but it’s so much easier to appreciate while at home, sitting on the sofa, warm and comfortable by the fire.

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Winter Solstice

Today, in the Northern Hemisphere, it is the Winter Solstice (also known as the December Solstice), which occurs when the sun reaches its most southerly declination of -23.5 degrees and the North Pole is tilted 23.5 degrees away from the sun.

All places above a latitude of 66.5 degrees north (Arctic Polar Circle) are now in darkness.

The winter solstice was traditionally a holy day: a sacred time in the annual cycle of life. There were many traditions (and several have survived in one form or another); among others, friends visited one another to exchange good-luck presents; temples were adorned with evergreen boughs, which symbolized life’s stability; large yule-logs were set ablaze in a great bonfire, minstrels played, and mead was consumed merrily (and profusely) about the fire; and children were honoured, because they bring luminosity, warmth, and exuberance into the darkest time of the year.