Yeah totally M; the tradition of bringing greenery into the house when everything appears to be dying off is a real morale booster and to be honest I think that's why Yule has the importance attatched to it that it does. Midwinter back in the day would have been grim to say the least, and what better way of combating the depression that must inevitabley set in, than to have a massive party bang slap in the middle of it? I should imagine they made a
huge deal out of the fact that it's the solstice, which means the days from then on out are getting longer, which in turn means that they should be able to think about planting again soon. This train of thought obviously leads to placating the various gods and goddesses with sacrifices and such and that always has to end in a party doesn't it?!
It pretty much means the same to me. Each year I struggle to keep depression at bay as I suffer with SAD. This year has been so much easier so far, purely because it's been sunnier. So, for me I really look forward to the Winter Solstice as a marking of the year. It's the day when the sun starts to come back. It's also exactly 6 months until my birthday, born as I was, on the Summer Solstice. Plus it's when I plant my Garlic.
In terms of celebrations; we have two kids so we kinda have to do the thing. It also means that we can have our own feast day every year, without treading on any family toes. Always a bonus!
So yeah. That's us. Freinds, Family and Food. But not necessarily in that order.
