Gaian Tarot Artist's Journal

A Blessed Solstice to All

 I posted this video last year, but I hope you don't mind that I'm posting it again. I had almost forgotten about it myself. I took many of the photos in the slideshow — some show winters on our beloved island, some show the snowstorm in our own backyard last year, and some show the Lucia Parties over the years.  Cate Kerr took most of the snowy landscapes. My beloved Pop is the "wise man" on the snowy road, just down from our island house.

This video still touches my heart.  We hope it touches yours, too.

A Blessed Solstice to all!

Click here to play a Quicktime movie (high res version) or click here for the YouTube version.

“In the Bleak Midwinter” performed by Craig Olson

Music by Gustav Holst (1906)

Lyrics by Christina Rossetti (1872), revised by Craig Olson (2006)

Photography Credits:

Snow scenes by Catherine Kerr and Joanna Powell Colbert

Interior scenes by Paul Bingman, Chele Eva Armstrong and Joanna Powell Colbert

St Lucia Party 2009

It is our favorite party of the year, when we gather with beloved friends and family to honor St Lucia, the Lightbringer "who heralds the imminent Return of the Sun," as my friend Helen Farias wrote on her party invitations back in the day.  Helen, who was the original founder and editor of the Beltane Papers, started the Lucia Party back in the 80's.  I read about them in TBP when I lived in California and was utterly charmed. I was honored to be invited to Helen's parties once I moved to the Northwest. Helen died of breast cancer in 1994, and we could not bear to celebrate again for a couple of years. In 1997, St Lucia's Day (December 13th) fell on a Saturday and it was a Full Moon to boot. How could we not celebrate?  Craig and I, along with the Circle of Stella Maris (our mermaid sisters and brothers) have been hosting the party each year ever since.  

This is the first Lucia Party in Rainbow Cottage, which is about half the size of Heron House on the island. It meant we had to cut the guest list way down, which is very hard to do. There were about 35-40 guests this year, which is a comfortable size. There were a few years on the island when 70 or 80 people came. We just can't manage that many people here.

I started our parties based on the traditions I remembered from Helen's parties, and of course our community added our own touches — lots of live music, since we have so many musicians among us, and ending the evening with a drum circle. We also read the poem "The Shortest Day" when we light the candle of Little Yule.  Many of the young women who have "played" St Lucy over the years grew up coming to the parties. My young friend Chloe, who was St Lucy this year, has been to our Lucia Parties almost every year of her life. 

I'm thinking about writing an e-book (for next year!) on "How to Host a St Lucia Party." Is that something any of you would be interested in?

Here's some photos from this year's party. 

Why We Honor St. Lucia

“Lo! on our threshold there,

White-clad, with flame-crown’d hair:

Santa Lucia, Santa Lucia.

I hear you singing this refrain as I enter your homes on this dark night, bearing my gifts of light for your souls and bread for your bodies. Oh, Hail! Do you know me? Even my name speaks of the Light. I am Lucia, that One whose visit heralds the Return of the Sun.

In elder times, you called me by other names. In ancient Rome, I was Juno Lucina, midwife to the newborn Sun. In the northlands, I was Freya, she of the golden necklace, Bride of the Vanir. I flew across the night sky in an amber chariot drawn by my beloved cats and entered your homes before dawn. My cats came along, though mysteriously changed into nourishing cakes! You knew me too as Frigga of the hearth and home, when I sat at my spinning wheel and spun threads of sunlight to brighten the morning sky. 

They say of me: ‘Honor St. Lucy with great good cheer, and you shall have plenty for all of the year!’ And it’s true! You do me honor when you gather in my name. I bring to you the gift of the gathering of friends and family, and the promise of longer days.

More than anything, I am the Lightbringer, who appears mysteriously out of the darkest night with hope and sustenance for all.”

The rest of the article is found here.

Advent-of-the-Sun Calendar: Solstice Day!

And on Solstice Day, my true love sent to me . . .

A song & slideshow from our family to yours.

Click here to play a Quicktime movie (high res version) or click here for the YouTube version.

“In the Deep Midwinter” performed by Craig Olson

Music by Gustav Holst (1906)

Lyrics by Christina Rossetti (1872), revised by Craig Olson (2006)

Photography Credits:

Snow scenes by Catherine Kerr and Joanna Powell Colbert

Interior scenes by Paul Bingman, Chele Eva Armstrong and Joanna Powell Colbert

Advent-of-the-Sun Calendar: Day 20

On the twentieth day of Advent, my true love sent to me . . . 

"In Praise of Christmas," one of the most beautiful Yule carols ever written, with revised lyrics by Helen Farias.

My friend Helen, founder of the Beltane Papers back in the early 80's and creator of the original Lucia parties, had a knack for revising lyrics to beloved melodies.  I first heard this song from her before Loreena McKennitt recorded her own well-known version.  Here is a video of Loreena's version (hauntingly beautiful).  Here are the songsheet and traditional lyrics.  And if you'd like to learn the song to sing for your own revels, here are Helen's revised lyrics.  Blessed be.  (Photo of an island maple taken by me a few winters ago.)

"To Drive the Cold Winter Away" (or, "In Praise of Christmas")



Melody: 17th century English traditional

Lyrics by Helen Farias

When Christmas’s tide comes in like a bride,

With holly and ivy clad,

Her candles aglow, her mantle of snow,

Shall make our weary hearts glad.

Your door open wide to call her inside

To brighten the gloomy day.

Our wassail is blest, our carols are best

To drive the cold winter away.

This time of the year is spent in good cheer

And friends together do meet 

To sit by the fire, with magic conspire

To make their holidays sweet.

The Lady and Lord with circle and ward

Will bid the good spirits stay,

And at our behest they’ll banish the rest

To drive the cold winter away.

So these are the days we joyfully praise,

Despite the darkening year.

We trust that the Light that shines in the night

Dispels all sorrow and fear.

The stars in the sky that sparkle on high

And here comes the Good Dame, plum pudding aflame

To drive the cold winter away.

Advent-of-the-Sun Calendar: Day 18

On the eighteenth day of Advent, my true love sent to me . . . 

Snowfall, wild visitors, and a warm, warm house.

Advent-of-the-Sun Calendar: Day 17

On the seventeenth day of Advent, my true love sent to me . . . 

"Firedance," a lively song to celebrate the Return of the Sun by Canadian group Jaiya.  (It's only a clip, not the whole song, sorry! But you can hear how lively it is.)

You can buy the CD or download it here.  

"Yule is come, now beat the drum,

and light the Solstice flame . . .

Tonight we raise a hymn of praise,

for the Sun returns again!"

Advent-of-the-Sun Calendar: Day 16

On the sixteenth day of Advent, my true love sent to me . . . 

"A Litany for the Winter Solstice" by John & Caitlin Matthews

In the Matthews' wonderful book The Winter Solstice: The Sacred Traditions of Christmas, they suggest that we sit alone or with others quietly around a candle or fire. "Then," they write, "make a litany of praise to the thing that you hold most precious about this season and the great festival in which you are taking part. . . Here are a few suggestions to get you started. Once you begin, ask others to add their own lines — and remember, this can be fun as well as serious — witty lines are just as much a party of the litany since laughter is essential to any celebration." (pg 44)

For the return of the Sun — blessings and praise!

For the gifts we give, and receive — blessings and praise!

For all the gift-givers — blessings and praise!

For the Children of Wonder — blessings and praise!

For children everywhere — blessings and praise!

For sunsets and starlight — blessings and praise!

For fabulous feast days — blessings and praise!

For those who cook them — blessings and praise!

For the tree in the corner — blessings and praise!

For the candles in the window — blessings and praise!

For the icicles on the trees — blessings and praise!

For light on the snowfields — blessings and praise!

For the gifts of friendship — blessings and praise!

For hand-bell ringers — blessings and praise!

For the robin and wren — blessings and praise!

For animals everywhere — blessings and praise!

"You can continue with this litany for as long as you would like and as many things as you can think of. In this way nothing gets forgotten and the things that mean most to each one of us are acknowledged and honored." (pg 45)

Please add your favorite things about this Season to the litany in the comments!

More about Santa Lucia

Several people have asked me for more information about St. Lucia.  She's been a part of my life for so long that I forget that most people don't know her history and mythology.  The following is an article I wrote in 2000 that was published a year or two later in PanGaia magazine.  Warning: it's long, and has footnotes!

The Magical Giftbringers of Yule: St. Lucia 

One of the most charming customs of the Yuletide season is that of the Lucy Bride.  She is the young woman or girl who wears a crown of candles on her head and walks through a dimly lit home, carrying a tray of pastries and coffee to feed her family.  She is called St. Lucia and is most commonly known as the Christian saint who was said to light the way to salvation.  But why did this Italian saint, with her origins in Sicily, capture the hearts of the people of the far north?  For it is in the dark, northern lands of Scandinavia that she is the most beloved.  As Clement A. Miles wrote a hundred years ago, the imagery of the light shining forth out of darkness is a primary Yuletide theme, one that seems to strike deeply in the hearts of humankind.   “Lux in tenebris is one of the strongest notes of Christmas: in the bleak midwinter a light shines through the darkness; when all is cold and gloom, the sky bursts into splendor, and in the dark cave is born the Light of the World.”¹

Lucia Party 2008

My friend Helen Farias started the tradition of Lucia Parties back in the 80's, and my circle sisters and I hosted them continually since 1997.  The last 8 parties were held at Heron House on the island. This year, we rented a beautiful Victorian mansion in downtown Bellingham.  A good time was had by all, although many people left early because of the blizzard that swept in halfway through.  After a harrowing drive home on icy hills, a few of us continued the party into the wee hours, then rose Sunday morning to a blanket of snow.  The hostesses & overnight guests gathered for brunch at Rainbow Cottage and we spent a day of "time out of time."  Our hearts are full and grateful.

I uploaded photos to my Flickr account here.