Happy First Day of Winter

"Every winter, When the great sun has turned his face away, The earth goes down into a vale of grief, And fasts, and weeps, and shrouds herself in sables, Leaving her wedding-garlands to decay, Then leaps in spring to his returning kisses." ~ Charles Kingsley, Saint's Tragedy (act III, sc. 1)

This is it, kids. The days start getting longer again from here. Happy Winter Solstice! For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, this astronomical event means that tonight will be the longest night of the year. To quote wikipedia: "Astronomical events, which during ancient times controlled the mating of animals, sowing of crops and metering of winter reserves between harvests, show how various cultural mythologies and traditions have arisen."

I don't practice animal husbandry, or plant crops or store food for winter (although maybe that isn't such a bad idea these days), but I can appreciate why it was so significant to have practices of observing this day for our ancestors. Basically, if you didn't understand the seasons, you didn't survive, and neither did your family or your tribe. That information bears honoring and remembering through future generations.

Aside from the astronomical event, I enjoyed reading about the myriad of Winter Celebrations that occur all around the world at this time of year, as so many cultures attach significance to this happening. And an informative classification of the major world's religions can be found here.

I'm not a religious person. At this time of year, I cannot help but consider all of the beliefs that are held around the world. My main wish for all is of tolerance, if we still decide to associate any particular philosophical or religious aspect to this day or time of year.

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Aside from that, there are some wicked cool photos in the Flickr Commons, if you've never visited yet. The Flickr Commons is a public archive of photography, with an amazing array of images on many, many subjects. I just typed in "winter" and came up with these two gems.

What captures me about old photos is the humanity of them. Even more than a painting, we truly see ourselves in our predecessors. People are people. No matter where and when they live.

"For those who have seen the Earth from space, and for the hundreds and perhaps thousands more who will, the experience most certainly changes your perspective. The things that we share in our world are far more valuable than those which divide us." ~ Donald Williams, former NASA astronaut, who has logged a total of 287 hours and 35 minutes in space