It’s dark outside. It’s cold. I have a great love of woolly jumpers and hot drinks. I cherish the excuse for fairy lights and indulging my mania for shawls. It’s perfect weather for knitting. And baking cake. And staying inside. How can I find so many positive things to say about a season so many people find so hard? Am I just lucky in my preferences? Or, amazingly well grounded and uncomplaining?*
I was incredibly lucky at a formative age to dabble in things pagan-minded. The triple mother figure encompasses not only the spring and summers of our lives, with which modern media is so obsessed, but also the fallow, regenerative time of winter. Recognising Hallowe’en as the turning of the year transformed my vision of the seasons. Yes, spring and summer are glorious and fruitful. Autumn and winter are their necessary, nourishing counterparts: a time to go inside, physically and spiritually, to settle with the seeds that have been planted in the sunny months, to nurture them and watch them grow. This natural cycle rang so true for me, and I see it played out in my daily life. It seems no coincidence that this group is forming so meaningfully at this moment, as we all turn inward, consciously or not.
Light festivals dominate this time of year. Yet what is often a superficial sparkle can be uncomfortable. How can we bring real light in the darkness? How do you?These are the themes for our next meeting. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to bring thoughts, stories, poems, music, images that bring light to you. Please also bring a tea-light holder that you are happy to give away.
* The answer begins with an ‘n’ and ends with ‘o’.
Our running order for next time will be something like this… Please add things, move them around, and all that. It’s our time, every one of us.
From 7 pm turn up, get comfy
7.30 Let us begin.
Chalice lighting
Check-in
Readings we wish to share
A guided meditation on darkness and light: the image above is of the winter solstice light at Newgrange (Knowth Passage Tomb, County Meath, Ireland).
Discussion
Santa Lucia and bringing light: a small ritual of lighting tea-lights and exchanging them.
Check-out
Anne xxx
SacredSpace&Cake 
I love this post Anne. I would very much like to hear more about the triple mother figure. The plan for the evening sounds perfect. I will also try to make a Sankta Lucia Head crown for Sarah (don’t wear hairspray if you can Sarah!)
Excellent, Eleanor, that’d be wonderful – would you be able to tell us something about Santa Lucia as well? I know nothing, I’ve never seen it celebrated, I’d love to hear more. I’m happy to try to speak about the triple goddess briefly too. A good chance to think a bit more about it. (Hey, I seem to be getting the hang of this blogging thing…)