A Yule Poem for the Children

The Childs’ Wonder

“Daddy”, she said, her eyes full of tears,
“will you talk to me and quiet my fears?
Those bad boys at school are spreading a lie
’bout the impossibilty of reindeer that fly.
There’s no Santa Claus, they say with a grin
there’s not one now and there has never been.

How can one man take all of those toys
to thousands of girls and boys?
But I told them Daddy, that they were not right,
that I would come home and find out tonight.
Mama said wait until you come home.
Please tell me now that I was not wrong.”

Her Daddy looked at her questioning face
and puffed his pipe while his fratic mind raced.
He had put this off as long as he could,
he had to think fast and it better be good.
Whispering a prayer, he began with a smile,

“Remember at circle how we learned to pray,
asking the Goddess to take care of us each day?
And you know how we say a prayer before each meal?
To this same Goddess whom we know to be real.
Though we never see her, we know she is there
watching her children with such loving care.”

“The Goddess started Yule a long time ago
when she gave us herself to love and to know.
A spirit of giving came with that gift,
and her generosity filled the whole earth.
Man had to name this spirit of giving
just as he names all things that are living.”

“The name Santa Claus came to someone’s mind
problably the best name of any to find.
There is, you can see, and I think quite clear
Truly a Santa who visits each year.
A spirit like the Goddess, whom we never see,
She enters the hearts of your mother and me.”

“Each year at Yule for one special night
we become him and make everything right.
But the REAL spirit of Yule is in you and in me
and I hope that you are old enough now to see
that as we believe and continue to give,
our friend Santa Claus will continue to live.”

~Author Unknown~

A Yuletide Favorite – Twelfth Night Cake

2 ¼ lb. mixed dried sultanas, raisins and currants

2 oz mixed peel

2 oz glace cherries

2 oz chopped walnuts

¼ pint whisky

¼ pint milk

12 oz muscavado sugar

12 oz butter

4 eggs

1 lb. 4 oz plain flour

1 level tbs. baking powder

2 level tsp. mixed spice

Method

Place the dried fruit and peel in a bowl. Stir in the whisky and milk, cover and leave overnight. Heat the oven to 140oC /gas mark 1. Oil a large tin [approx. 12 inch x 10 inch] and line the base and sides with grease proof paper. Brush the paper with oil. Cream the butter and sugar, add the beaten eggs a little at a time. If the mixture curdles add a little flour. Sift the flour, baking powder and spice and fold into to the creamed mixture. Add the fruit, nuts and whisky. Stir well.　 Turn into the tin. Bake in the centre of the oven for 2 ¼ to 2 ½ hours. Leave to cool in the tin. Turn out and remove the paper.　 If you really must, you can sprinkle more whisky. The cake can be iced and decorate with stars, ribbons, wheat ears, nuts and glace fruit.

–Anna Franklin, Yule (The Eight Sabbats)

Reducing Your Holiday Stress at Yule

It should be the happiest time of year, right? After all, the Yule season is when we celebrate the return of the sun, and the days start to get a little brighter. The mundane world is observing Christmas and Hanukkah, gifts are being given all over the place — it should be a season of great joy. Yet for many people, late fall and early winter are a time when frustrations begin to build, and anxiety (and often depression) set in.

Between getting together with family, preparing big meals, shopping for gifts, decorating the house, and spending money on others, for many people Yule can be a time of overwhelming stress. Here are a few tips on reducing your stress levels during the Yule season.

1. Set your limits.

Are you in charge of the community coat drive, the local toy roundup, and getting your entire PTO’s winter fundraiser up and running? Step back! Be willing to say “No” when someone asks you to commit more time and energy than you have to give. We all want to help others at this time of year, but if you take on more than you really are capable of, you’ll become resentful and angry – and that’s no way to spend the Yule season.

Learning to say “No” might be the best gift you can give yourself this year.

2. Enlist help.

Feeling a bit overwhelmed by the eighteen boxes of Yule décor in your basement? Fine — put the kids to work. If you don’t have kids — or if yours are too young to decorate — put on a pot of wassail and invite a few friends over for a decorating party. It will take the stress out of the situation if you’re surrounded by people whose company you enjoy.

Likewise, if you’re hosting a holiday dinner, ask others to show up early to set the table or to bring part of the meal as a side dish. I’ve learned that if I plan ahead, and just ask, I can usually get someone else to commit to taking care of cleanup afterwards!

3. Don’t overspend.

One of the biggest holiday stress-outs is the knowledge that you’ll be paying off Yule until June. Don’t let this happen. Make a budget, and stick to it. For more on how to do this, read about How to Have a Budget Friendly Yule. Also remember, you don’t have to go crazy with the gifts. Do you want to teach your children about the value of the holiday season, or that whoever gets more stuff wins?

In many families, parents have learned to limit the number of gifts each person gets — in mine, each kid gets one big gift, and then three smaller gifts such as a DVD, a pair of cute winter pajamas, and a game to play or a book to read. We’ve done this for years, and no one complains.

4. Set boundaries.

A lot of people stress out over family relationships during the holidays. If you’re one of those people, you need to decide ahead of time how you’re going to deal with family members who aggravate you. Got a non-Pagan family member who just won’t leave you alone?

5. Decompress.

When you’re feeling overwhelmed in the middle of the season, and you know you still have things that need to get done, take a break. Turn off the phone, shut the door, and go have some Me Time. Take a one-hour power nap, enjoy a bubble bath with some nice scented candles, invite a friend out for a quick coffee date. Set aside a few minutes each day to meditate and get yourself grounded. You’ll appreciate it in the long run.

6. Recognize burnout.

A big problem many people seem to have is they just fail to realize they’re burning themselves out. Stress creeps up on us, and then we tend to justify it by saying, “Well, it’s the holidays.” Learn to recognize the signs of burnout, and react accordingly. Some signs include:

Depleted levels of physical energy

Lowered immune system, feeling run-down or ill

Lack of interest in things that you normally enjoy

Decreased sex drive

Negative, pessimistic outlook

Anger directed at people who don’t deserve it, like kids and sales clerks

If you start seeing these behaviors in yourself, it’s time to take a step back and recognize that you’re stressing out. Now that you’ve discovered the problem, take time to fix it, so that you and the people around you can have a happy and healthy Yule season.

By Patti Wigington

Article published on & owned by About.com

Setting Up Your Yule Altar

Yule is the time of year when Pagans around the world celebrate the Winter Solstice. If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, this will be on or around December 21, but if you’re below the Equator, your Yule celebration will fall in June. This Sabbat is considered the longest night of the year, and following Yule, the sun begins its long journey back to earth. Try some or even all of these ideas — obviously, space may be a limiting factor for some, but use what calls to you most.

Colors of the Season:

Winter is here, and even if the snow hasn’t fallen yet, there’s a definite chill in the air. Use cold colors to decorate your altar, such as blues and silvers and whites. Also find ways to include the reds, whites and greens of the season. Evergreen boughs never go out of style, so add some dark greens as well. Cover your altar with a cloth in a cool color, and then add candles in a variety of different wintery shades. Use candles in silvers and golds — and sparkle is always good too!

Symbols of Winter:

Yule is a Sabbat that reflects the return of the sun, so add solar symbols to your altar.

Gold discs, yellow candles, anything bright and shiny can represent the sun. Some people even get a large pillar candle, inscribe it with solar symbols, and designate it as their sun candle. You can also add evergreen boughs, sprigs of holly, pinecones, a Yule log, and even Santa Claus. Consider antlers or reindeer, along with other symbols of fertility.

Other Signs of the Season:

There’s no limit to the number of things you can put on your Yule altar, as long as you’ve got the space.

Consider some of these items as part of your Sabbat decor:

Fruit and nuts

Mistletoe

Snowflakes, icicles, even a bowl of snow

Candy canes

Bells

By Patti Wigington

Article published on & owned by About.com