The Twelve Days After Christmas

The first day after Christmas my true love and I had a fight
And so I chopped the pear tree down and burned it just for spite
Then with a single cartridge, I shot that blasted partridge
My true love, my true love, my true love gave to me

The second day after Christmas, I pulled on the old rubber gloves
And very gently wrung the necks of both the turtle doves
My true love, my true love, my true love gave to me

The third day after Christmas, my mother caught the croup;
I had to use the three French hens to make some chicken soup
The four calling birds were a big mistake, for their language was obscene.
The five gold rings were completely fake and they turned my fingers green

The sixth day after Christmas, the six laying geese wouldn’t lay,
I gave the whole darn gaggle to the A.S.P.C.A.
On the seventh day what a mess I found
All seven of the swimming swans had drowned
My true love, my true love, my true love gave to me

The eighth day after Christmas, before they could suspect,
I bundled up the eight maids a milking, nine pipers piping
Ten ladies dancing, ‘leven lords a leaping,
Twelve drummers drumming and sent them back collect
I wrote my true love, “We are through, love”,
and I said in so many words,

“Furthermore your Christmas gifts were for the birds!”

Author:      Frederick Silver

Website: Pagan Library

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2015 December 29

Dust of the Orion Nebula
Image Credit & Copyright: Raul Villaverde Fraile

Explanation: What surrounds a hotbed of star formation? In the case of the Orion Nebula — dust. The entire Orion field, located about 1600 light years away, is inundated with intricate and picturesque filaments of dust. Opaque to visible light, dust is created in the outer atmosphere of massive cool stars and expelled by a strong outer wind of particles. The Trapezium and other forming star clusters are embedded in the nebula. The intricate filaments of dust surrounding M42 and M43 appear brown in the featured image, while central glowing gas is highlighted in red. Over the next few million years much of Orion’s dust will be slowly destroyed by the very stars now being formed, or dispersed into the Galaxy.

Moon and Regulus on December 29

Tonight – December 29, 2015 – look eastward before going to bed, and you just might catch the moon and the star Regulus over your horizon. If you’re an early bird – and go to sleep before the moon and Regulus come up at mid-to-late evening – wake up before dawn to see them. If you do that, you’ll notice the dazzling planet Jupiter nearby … and the moon will be moving toward Jupiter in the next few days. On this night, Jupiter will follow the moon and Regulus into your sky by very late evening or after midnight. After Jupiter rises, it’ll follow the moon and Regulus westward throughout the rest of the night.

Whether you’re sky gazing this evening or during the predawn hours, look first for the waning gibbous moon and the nearby bright star will be Regulus.

Jupiter is much brighter than Regulus and more noticeable, but it comes up later.

The exact rising times for the moon, Regulus and Jupiter vary around the world, so you might want to check out the links on our almanac page.

What’s more, three other planets – other than Jupiter – light up the morning sky right now: Venus, Mars and Saturn. All four will light up the morning hours for months to come.

And here’s something really exciting. Mercury will join the foursome in the morning sky in late January 2016. When that happens, all five visible planets – Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn – will be shining simultaneously in the sky visible from around the world.

You can see all five planets simultaneously from about January 20 to February 20, 2016.

In the meantime, you can also see all five visible planets tonight! Catch Mercury at dusk or very early evening, and then spot the other four visible morning planets – Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn – in the predawn/dawn sky.

Author

Bruce McClure

Bruce McClure is the chief writer for the popular EarthSky Tonight pages. Since joining EarthSky in 2004, he has written thousands of astronomy articles, enjoyed here by millions. He also writes, gives planetarium shows and hosts a wide assortment of public astronomy programs in and around his home in upstate New York. If you ask an astronomy question on our site, it’s likely to be Bruce that answers it. His love for the heavens has taken him to Lake Titicaca in Bolivia, and he has sailed the North Atlantic, earning his celestial navigation certificate through the School of Ocean Sailing and Navigation. Bruce is also a sundial aficionado. He says his number one passion – besides his wife Alice – is stargazing.

Article published on EarthSky

The Words of Confucius

You cannot open a book without learning something.

Your Daily Influences
December 29th, 2015

Eight of Cups Reversed
Interest in the material world and success emerges or returns. Happiness and love are possible.

Ingwaz
Ingwaz signifies completion, success and fertility. Your present ambitions are about to be met. You are fecund in both mind and body.

Capricornus the Goat
This aspect of your life will be strongly influenced by a person who is practical, prudent, ambitious, disciplined, patient, careful, humorous and reserved. They could be someone you know in the medical field–a nurse or doctor perhaps.

Your Daily Influences represent events and challenges the current day will present for you. They may represent opportunities you should be ready to seize. Or they may forewarn you of problems you may be able to avoid or lessen. Generally it is best to use them as tips to help you manage your day and nothing more.

Shuffling the Cards, Your Past Present & Future Reading for Today

Past Influence whose impact on your life is waning.

The Believer

The Believer represents Faith and the realization that you have an important place in the workings of the Universe. Although The Believer may not always understand why things are the way they are, they none-the-less feel an underlying cosmic rhythm which is moving events in a direction that is good. The Believer rejoices in their celestial role, because they realize their life has purpose on a grand scale.

 
Present Influence whose impact on your life is very strong.

Alturism

Altruism denotes the noble act of giving to those in need without the expectation of a return. The act of giving has been seen as one of humankind’s greatest attributes throughout history. It is honored in nearly every culture. To give is a gift to both those who receive and those who give. Giving is usually associated with addressing the material needs of others, but the gift given can take many forms such as wisdom or protection or simply a shoulder to cry on.

Future influence whose impact on your life is growing and will be very strong in the future.

Solitude

Solitude is represented by a single person standing at the end of a boardwalk staring out at a vast, empty panorama. They are truly alone, but may not feel loneliness. They are at a place in their life where the need to withdraw from the our secular world is strong, because their focus should be on their inner self, their morality, and their dreams. The view before them is empty, but it is a canvas on which they may paint their future–a future restricted only by the size of their imagination and courage. For them Solitude is a choice. They chose to take the walkway that distances them from the rest of us. It is also a choice that can be undone. Just as they chose to take a path that leads them away from us, they may choose to turn around and come back at anytime.

Your Ancient Symbol Card for Today

The Journey

While physical travel may be involved, The Journey represents an individual’s spiritual trek from one point to another. The Journey is represented by a sailboat gliding across an open sea. Like those traversing the ocean The Journey requires that we move off the firm ground of our present state and strike out for a new destination. The trip itself may well be full of adventure and challenges. There may be times when we lose sight of where we came from and possibly not even know where we’re going. Storms may crop up without warning. Diversions may slow our progress to our destination down. While it’s good to have an idea of where you want to go, it’s equally important to remember that often it’s the getting there and not the destination that is the most rewarding. To take such a spiritual voyage takes courage and conviction that direction in which your are moving is right for you.

As a daily card, The Journey indicates a time in which you are likely to derive insight and spiritual growth by moving off your everyday path. Although the time span is short, this movement may have a profound and enduring effect on your life. Indeed you may be on the verge of experiencing a revelation, or enjoying a period of self actualization. Be open to new paths and you may well end up with some very positive changes in your life.

Your Crowley Thoth Tarot Card for Today

The Devil

The Devil is the more perplexing cards one can draw in a reading. He represents all that most find undesirable, distasteful. He embodies the seven deadly sins (Lust, Gluttony, Avarice, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, Pride). The Devil is evil personified. However, it is unlikely his presence in your cards means you are most suited to be a child of Satan. Think of the saying “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” The more plausible explanation is that you are actually quite moral, and feel a deep duty to oppose the dark forces The Devil embodies. This in no way implies you should establish your own inquisition, but simply that you are acutely aware of the destructive influences in our world and have the strength to resist them.