Blessed Yule 2020!!!

Merry Meet witches and friends! It’s Yule time!!!! How are you all doing? Delighting in the celebrations of the season I hope whether you’re with family or wrapped in a cozy blanket with Netflix. Today’s going to be formatted a little different being that it’s a holiday so there won’t be any herb of the week or Famous Witch in History. This Yule I want to focus on things to make your season cozy. Basically I'm going to shove a ton of hygge in a podcast with crafts, recipes, a tarot spread and a couple of stories.

So Settle in, grab a drink, and let’s talk.

Yule, Winter Solstice, MidWinter, Saturnalia, whatever you celebrate it’s all about being together, lots of good food and drink, gifting of some form or another, and celebrating the return of the Sun. Recently there’s been heavy scholarly (or so I hear from social media scholars) about whether or not the ancients actually celebrated these winter holidays. My personal practice follows Celt and Norse lines and I can’t think of one reason why these people wouldn’t have celebrated the longest night of the year when they celebrated mostly for Solar or food reasons. Let’s get to know these festivities a little more!

Yule is originally Norse Jul. Odin rode Sleipnir the 8 legged horse as his own version of Santa,, rune set were carved of mistletoe wood which is the poison that killed Baldr the sun deity, yule logs were decorated and burned to encourage the return of the Sun and the merriment continued until the log burned out which could take as long as 12 days.

For the Celts, Winter Solstice began to add some of these practices as the bloodlines intermingled but the Celts had their stories of the Oak and Holly kings and it was a time of deep cleaning and clearing.

Today all these winter celebrations have been well shaken and stirred so that Yule tends to be an all encompassing term for celebration near the Winter Solstice which happens between December 21-23 depending on the year.

This year I have some pointers, recipes, decoration instructions and stories to share so let’s start out with the pointers.

Use Real herbs and tree parts keep the longing for the green outdoors at bay. Live tree, live wreath, it’ll help you feel closer to nature. If you or a member of your family is allergic to pine, some good alternatives are holly, hawthorn, poinsettia, rosemary, birch, yew, ivy, and oak….all responsibly sourced please!

Crafting with nature is a fun way to bring the outdoors in. Oranges with cloves for decoration in a bowl, on strings, or on the tree is a family favorite around here. Pomander (whole oranges with cloves stuck in patterns around it are great for bowls and a natural potpourri. Oranges can be dried at 200 degrees F sliced about a 1 cm thick and dried for a max of 4 hours (Flip them every now and again) and then strung with cranberries and popcorn!

Burning the yule log is a big deal for Solar rituals and protection of self and home. Save ashes for home protection and add to Midsummer or Litha fire. You could also paint or craft with yule log ash, candles, herbs associated with the sun like sunflowers, dandelion, oranges or cinnamon.

This next little bit is very link heavy. I don't claim these as mine but I would like them to be available for you to do as solitary, with family or coven.

Yule candle ritual link https://www.learnreligions.com/welcome-back-the-sun-for-yule-2562985?utm_source=pinterest

Recipes:

Sun king soup

https://www.learnreligions.com/yule-cooking-and-recipes-2562933?utm_campaign=shareurlbuttons_nip&utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest

Wassail punch recipe

2 qt apple juice, 1 qt cranberry juice, 1c pineapple, 3-4c orange juice, ¾ c lemon juice 1c sugar 2 sticks of cinnamon 1 tsp cloves

Tarot spread 3 card

1 my night: shadow self and spirit matters,

2 my day: external affairs and external self,

3 my fire: creative spark and ambition or motivation

found on spoonlesswitch.com and original credit to The Butterfly Witch

Celtic story https://themuseinthemirror.com/2014/12/14/twas-the-night-before-yuletide/

Odin story https://vistavikingfestival.com/vista-viking-news/a-visit-from-odin

Oak and Holly King https://www.scribd.com/doc/48983306/The-Oak-King-and-the-Holly-King

I wish you all the merriest of holidays and I will talk with you soon!