The New Age is here, the Ascension is underway; let us begin the process of celebration.  I declare a new holiday, comprised of the old and the new, one that reflects the essence of what we truly wish to honor now, in 2011 and beyond.  I proclaim the holiday called YULE.  I have chosen to henceforth call this holiday Yule, in order to honor the ancient observance of this time of year and because of the feeling it gives to hear the word.  To me it signifies all the warmth we create in this season.

Perhaps it should first be mentioned that the focal point of Yule is the Winter Solstice, when the day and night are equal in length.  It is a time to honor the Mother Earth on the longest night and shortest day of the year.  It is also a day of balance and equality, when we can stand robustly in our center, flanked by darkness and light.  This a time when we stand the closest to darkness, but are reminded that we are the Light and wherever we are the Light will prevail.

This time of year, in the Northern Hemisphere, is cold and gloomy, so in order to lift our spirits we must create light, more than at any other time of the year.  So we place many lights around and in our homes.   So let us proceed to the particulars of the holiday.  Burn more lights in your home and outside if you are able.  This doesn’t imply turning on more of your table lamps, but rather adding festive lighting, such as candles, Christmas lights or battery operated tea lights.

Our sense of smell is the our most basic of the five senses, so add the smells of the seasons, warm scents that fill the senses with  comforting essences of nature.  Bring an evergreen branch into your home and smell the heavenly gift it has to offer.  We no longer require an entire tree in our homes, but the symbol of the everlasting life of our essence.  Create a Yule arrangement in your home.  Mine consists of the following:

• A small  evergreen wreath
• An angel in the center to remind us of the Beings of Light that are with us always
• A small Santa, the bringer of gifts and the symbol of abundance for the coming year.
• I large clear Quartz crystal to bring the light of the Crystalline Age
• Candles and tea lights to keep the Light from disappearing into the darkness.
• Oranges and Golden Delicious apples to symbolize the warmth of the sun.

Food is my one weakness and at the Yule Holiday we eat all our favorite things.  I keep oranges and Golden Delicious apples on my table.  The Yule meal is not like a traditional feast where we all sit at the table and stuff ourselves, but rather we have on our table, around our centerpiece, all our favorite foods and we take small sampling of whatever takes our fancy.  We might have a dinner of gingerbread and crab cakes, there are no rules.  There is no dieting and there are no restrictions.  It is truly a joyous occasion.

Finally, throughout the Yule Holiday, we give thanks for our lives and all the Love.  Then we give thanks for the Light that we hold, so that others may know that there is a Light.