...did not read the instructions right on the Covid test! My son suggested I check again, and yep, he was right. Negative.
But, I have something yucky for sure. I am just thrilled it is not Covid. I will still lay low for another day or two, then I should be okay to go out again. I am disappointed because I wanted to go to a Solstice Watch event, but I really don't want to spread this crap around.
Meantime, more rest us on my schedule, and a little Solstice celebration here at home with homemade spiked eggnog, fruitcake, mince pies, a fire. And hanging the mistletoe! Last year's bunch, which is still hanging over a door, will go into the fire.
The old folklore attributes great powers to mistletoe, one of them being protection from evil, so, you know, just in case there is any evil lurking around, it is good to have mistletoe on hand to do battle!
I posted the recipe for eggnog a few years ago. Ours uses raw eggs, which is how my mother, and hers before that, always made it. So delicious, and unlike anything you will find in a store.
I will leave the outside lights on tonight, and we will have (battery) candles lit throughout the house, to welcome the return of light. Celtic folklore notes that tonight is the triumphant return of the Oak King over the Holly King, and he will reign until the Summer Solstice.
The Oak King, image found online with no attribution given.
Did you know that this time of year was once a time for the telling of ghost stories? The "veil" between the worlds of the living and the spirits was considered thinnest at this time, and one reason that folklorists believe people built firs and lit candles at Solstice, to keep the spirits away. Remember the lyrics in the carol, It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year? It wasn't just Dickens' tale of Scrooge!
Do you celebrate Solsice in any way? Or are you just happy to see the days grow longer?
Leaving you today with a song from my favorite album for this time of year, Song of Solstice by Jennifer Cutting and her Ocean Orchestra.
Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.
Glad to hear it’s not Covid, but there’s certainly all sorts of other icky respiratory viruses out there. One is lucky to dodge any of them. I love your oak man. I love the folklore and wish I was doing something special for the solstice! - Jenn
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear your Covid diagnosis was off-kilter. Still, get well and stay well. Keep the fire burning, the candles lit and Happy Solstice!
ReplyDeleteI do celebrate meditating upon the darkness, as a positive aspect of the cyles of life, birth/death/decay/rebirth. Dark of the womb, a warm cozy place, where birth of a new sun will be coming after waiting through the longest night. Of course that invites many stories to be hung on that event! Today as I drove I tried to stay focused but did consider that the original dark/light cycle didn't include an evil/good kind of dichotomy. I really think darkness holds so much promise to be developed, and am sorry we've tossed it into that devilish/evil place in our lives. I want to reclaim it. Enjoy your solstice practice, it sounds so pretty! And you stitch each year together, from last year's mistletoe, to this years which will remain until next year.
ReplyDeleteWe don't celebrate solstice, but I kind of wish we did, and I am pleased that you do. I like the song. I am playing it now.
ReplyDeleteGood that you didn't have a covid. Probably just a heavy cold? At home we celebrate solstice with some homemade nutritious food and sweetened rice dumplings. Thanks for sharing that lovely song, Sue.
ReplyDeleteI loved the song! So glad it is not covid! But crud is no fun no matter the source. We often talk about seeing the Old Man in the Mountains, I'm not sure if he's a cousin to the ones you mentioned or not. But I'll take the longer days coming back! Annie
ReplyDeleteI love all your lore. Solstice or otherwise. There is definitely something gross going around.
ReplyDeleteCatching up on blog-reading a bit this morning and I'm so sorry you've been poorly! My Occasional Helper had "a cold" which was apparently so awful I didn't see him for 2 weeks. I hope you'll bounce back quicker, and I bet you will :)
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