The Witch’s Cauldron By Adriane Campbell
YULE FOREST
Every winter season my family and I would travel to a massive balsam and evergreen forest located in the mountains. As soon as we stepped out of the car, the smells of the forest would take over your senses invoking its magic throughout your being and grounding you into its roots. This is when the spirit of the season would collect within. The trees and the crisp cool air bring such a comforting energy. It is a time when we tend to cherish the most of all that we have and to acknowledge the good in others. Colors seem more vivid as if looking at the world through the eyes of a child. Joy is heartfelt and abundantly flowing through the magical, brisk air.
This is a time to honor the sun and the Earth for this transition. You can bring the warmth and comfort into your home by honoring the Yule Traditions. In addition, it is a time to honor your own inner sun and to bask in the warmth of your personal magic.
During this time there are many ways that you can bring the Sun element into your home. Herbs can make a space magical, adding aromas and beauty that engulf the meaning of the season. Sun plants such as balsam and mistletoe are used a lot throughout this part of the wheel of the year. Bringing the Sun into your home typically begins with your main entry door. Your entry door is where your energy flows in and from there, throughout your space. Your door is where your wreaths are placed and mistletoe is hung in the entryway.
Credit: Pixabay
This is a time where we are gifted with an opportunity to reflect upon the year and to embody the season’s offerings of light, gratitude, and rebirth. This is a celebration of death and rebirth. It is the death of the Winter which will soon be ending and welcoming Spring where the Earth will be reborn with new life and growth.
It marks a time of change and balance, when the Sun is at its most southeastern point. Then we experience the Winter Solstice which offers the longest night and the shortest day of the year. From this day forward, the Sun will rise earlier and earlier. Each day that passes will add a little more light and warmth to the chilly and quiet days of the Winter season.
Star Nations Magazine • December 2020 • 7
