When the frost has wrought a silence

On a lone winter evening, when the frost has wrought a silence.
~John Keats

If you pay attention to your circadian rhythm, you’ll notice something tonight. The sun will set a bit early and morning will come a bit late tomorrow and the long night will feel still.  Tonight marks the great stillness — the longest night of the year– the Winter Solstice.

The word solstice comes from the Latin and means sun set still. Every morning the sun rises on a slightly different trajectory than it did the morning before. At one point it appears not to move at all. That must have really rattled early humans. Winter brings scarcity and hardships. You’d want to know when the season would change and plenty would return. The moon does the same thing in its Lunar Standstill by the way, and ancient megaliths around the world mark both celestial events. Here’s a clip of one famous spot:

The Winter Solstice was a time for celebration and joy and many early cultures held solstice ceremonies to coax the return of the warming sun.  Some still do. It’s time to count your blessings and contemplate a new year.  May 2015 be blessed for you as well.

Whatever you dream you can do – begin it.
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.
Begin it now.
~Goethe

Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again.
~Joseph Campbell

In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.
~Albert Camus

More~
Here’s a great explanation of the hows and whys of the Winter Solstice from the US Navy.
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/rs_solstices.php

Here’s a bit of trivia for you. A Roman Saturnalia greeting in ancient times was io! That i is pronounced like an H. The next Ho Ho Ho you hear this time of year, you’ll know exactly where it comes from.  Oh that Santa.  🙂

❋❋❋

Vintage Greetings

As mentioned earlier this month, my husband and I are building a vintage postcard scrapbook — one postcard at a time. The album covers 100 years from 1860 to 1960 and has many slots yet to be filled. In the spirit of the season from now until New Year’s Day, I’ll share cards from my collection. Scroll down to see previous posts. Subscribe to get them in your inbox.

This one is in ratty condition but we added it because how often do you see a French mouse riding a lobster? Especially when it carries a scroll saying Paix, Joie, Sante, Bonheur  meaning Peace, Joy, Health and Happiness. Dated 1881.
🙂

❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋❋

Get your FREE ebooks in all formats
>>>Both are now at Barnes & Noble<<<
Exquisite Quills Holiday Anthology Vol 2.
Exquisite Quills Holiday Anthology Vol 1.

And while you’re there, sample my scorching love stories for free too!

❋❋❋❋❋

Today our guests are Authors Megan Crane and Bianca D’Arc.
http://romancebooks4us.blogspot.com/

Romance Books ‘4’ Us ~
The December contest is on at RB4U! The top prize this time is a $100 gift card to Amazon or B&N. The horde of remaining prizes will be split between two winners.
http://www.romancebooks4us.com

❋❋❋❋❋