Lighting trees in darkness, learning new ways from the old

Today is the winter solstice. Every year, My [immediate] family celebrate the shortest day by having an almost sorta thanksgiving but without all the bogusness and lots of family, and turkey. We also give gifts. we get a solstice tree each year, though its more of one of those mini-trees that are less than a foot high, and we have this little ikea string of lights that is just the right size to string around a less than a foot high tree. We sit and eat a small yet delicious meal that my talented father cooks, like every night, and then we turn off the lights, light candles and sometimes incense, and give gifts and hold hands and talk about what we're thankful for.

Solstice is pagan. Christmas was inspired from it. The started the fire and candles hung from trees, and the Christians took it and strung lights on their trees. Then the Jews started giving gifts at Hannukah because that's what they did at christmas. It all stemmed from Solstice. I hope I'm not offending you when I say that. Religion is such a touchy subject.

Solstice was started back when people were what you would call barbarians. They were worried that on solstice, when the sun left so quickly, that it would never return, so they lit fires and held hands and sang in hope that the sun would come back. And what do you know, in the morning, there it was! people would journey to stonehenge every solstice to see the sun rising in the morning. That is what I would like to do some solstice. To watch the sun come up once more with all the people I love.

And for all you guys that understand that feeling I've described, who understand the meaning of Solstice, and even for the ones who don't who don't even particularly respect it, but at the very least are interested by it, Here is a wallpaper, the very one I'm using on my computer. I;m sorry I can't give the artist credit, but I've forgotten where I got it. 

happy solstice,

Lola.

Title Quote: Dar Williams, the Christians and the Pagans